Articles by Ben Portnoy
Analysis: Three Pro Football Focus-based reasons for Mississippi State’s offensive spiral
STARKVILLE — Mississippi State is spiraling at an alarming rate.
Mississippi State’s Will Rogers offers glimpses of competence in otherwise forgettable offensive performance
Rogers shined in relief of K.J. Costello on Saturday against the Aggies and could be in line for more playing time at quarterback moving forward.
Tailspin: Mississippi State’s aerial attack falters for third straight week in loss to Texas A&M
Mike Leach’s air raid offense was in a dismal tailspin for the third straight week as the Bulldogs fell to 1-3.
Caledonia falls to Pontotoc in high-scoring homecoming affair
Despite a swarming effort on the interior and at the second level of its defense early, the Feds struggled to contain strong-armed southpaw quarterback Conner Armstrong and the Pontotoc offense.
‘A war of culture’: A history of Mike Leach’s longstanding success over Texas A&M
The former Red Raiders head coach has plenty of memories — many of them good ones — from playing the Aggies. He’ll take Texas A&M on again Saturday.
Three matchups to watch when Mississippi State plays No. 11 Texas A&M
STARKVILLE — Mississippi State is in a tailspin.
Mississippi State chasing defensive ‘identity’ as its production ranks among the nation’s best
STARKVILLE — Zach Arnett isn’t one to mince words. There’s a brutal honesty to Arnett’s verbiage day to day. In press conferences, he’s gruff but poignant. He tells it how it is. He’s unafraid to call out his group for a lack of effort or that a performance wasn’t up to snuff.
With the air raid screeching to a halt, Mike Leach looking to resuscitate struggling MSU offense
STARKVILLE — Change is coming to Mike Leach’s offense.
Analysis: Four things we learned from Mississippi State’s loss to Kentucky
STARKVILLE — Mississippi State is not who we thought they were.
CWD could devastate deer populations
Mississippi wildlife officials are on high alert.
With deer season inching closer and hunters prepared to head into the woods, representatives from the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks and those keenly involved in the hunting business are warning participants to take heed of cases of chronic wasting disease among deer in the state.
With K.J. Costello ineffective again, Will Rogers offers glimpse at the present and future
The freshman’s debut was short, mildly productive and, at least in spurts, offered glimmers of the rhythm, timing and efficiency that the Bulldogs lacked for virtually the entire night.
Mississippi State offense uninspired against Kentucky in second straight loss in Lexington
Just 14 days since a seemingly era-defining upset over then-No. 6 LSU, the Bulldogs promptly shrunk into a shell of its offensive self.
Fight club: The inside story of Mike Leach, Hal Mumme and Guy Morriss’ boxing offensive linemen and the 1997 Kentucky Wildcats
More than 20 years ago, the three Kentucky coaches hired a boxing instructor to teach their linemen the sweet science.
Three matchups to watch when Mississippi State travels to Kentucky
STARKVILLE — Mississippi State is sitting at 1-1, but the adventure to this point has been anything but normal.
Why Mississippi State struggled against Arkansas’ zone-heavy scheme, and how it’s preparing for more zone coverage going forward
STARKVILLE — Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach is preaching patience, at least offensively.
K.J. Costello’s ‘analytical’ approach to Arkansas loss guiding his process ahead of Kentucky
STARKVILLE — Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach literally sounded an air raid siren during his Monday press conference, but the Bulldogs’ offense and quarterback K.J. Costello aren’t panicking.
Mississippi State freshman trio shines in loss to Arkansas
Dillon Johnson, Jo’quavious Marks and Jaden Walley all showed flashes for the Bulldogs against Arkansas.
Hogtied: Mississippi State stunned by Arkansas in 2020 home opener
Former Stanford signal-caller K.J. Costello’s mortality was evident against an Arkansas team that had lost 20-straight SEC games entering Saturday.
Starkville Academy downs Pillow Academy on the legs of CJ Jackson, Randall Futral
With four touchdowns, Jackson looked the part of the bell-cow back he’s been throughout the year for the Volunteers, and Futral added two rushing scores.
California cool: Inside the process that brought about K.J. Costello’s final act at Mississippi State
STARKVILLE — K.J. Costello never dreamed of concluding his college career in a tiny corner of northeast Mississippi.





















