OXFORD — He knew the opportunities would be slim, but Maurice Smitherman also knew he had something to accomplish with each one.
Yes, he has mostly been a rotational cornerback for Mississippi State’s defense, but Thursday presented him an opportunity to play against would could be the nation’s best receiving corps. It was his chance to prove something; he may be getting much more of those opportunities over the next month.
It was from from enough to calm the euphoria of Thursday’s 35-3 Egg Bowl win for the No. 22 Bulldogs (8-4, 4-4 SEC), but the sideline-clearing fight at the end of the third quarter does force them to wonder how many defensive backs they’ll have available in the first half of the bowl game.
The altercation left cornerbacks Jamal Peters and Cameron Dantzler ejected for flagrant personal fouls; Section 6, Article 1 of the NCAA rulebook requires the Southeastern Conference to review such fouls to determine any future punishment. That review could be bad news for MSU safety Johnathan Abram, who was not ejected despite slapping the helmet of Ole Miss wide receiver A.J. Brown.
The exact discipline to come from the conference office remains to be seen. If it does limit personnel, MSU thinks it will be OK, and the 35-3 Egg Bowl win gave it more reason to believe.
Few embody that belief better than Smitherman.
“(Smitherman)’s not starting, and that shows what our depth is,” defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons said.
Smitherman has been second-team corner behind Dantzler and Peters all season, but thrust into full-time reps in the fourth quarter, he responded to the challenge. Smitherman made the most of his reps throughout the game, getting his first interception of the season in the end zone.
“It was a big chip on my shoulder all week,” Smitherman said. “(Cornerbacks coach Terrell Buckley) preached (Ole Miss wide receivers are) the best in the country, so we’re going to go out there and show what we’re made of. We feel like we’re the best DBs in the country, we went out there and did our thing.
“They told us before the game, ‘You’re going to get challenged, you’re going to get three or four balls.’ That’s what happened tonight. Nobody was open.”
These Bulldogs are more poised to handle this than most, because secondary shuffling has become their norm.
It started when the starter at Star, Brian Cole, got injured before the open week and was ultimately out for the year. That replacement was an easy fix, Jaquarius Landrews taking his spot and Marcus Murphy stepping up behind him, until Landrews got hurt just before the Alabama game. Instead of throwing the freshman Murphy into an every-snap role against the top-ranked Crimson Tide, MSU moved Abram to Star and replaced him at strong safety with C.J. Morgan.
Senior Chris Rayford has been an importance piece of it all, too. When cornerback depth seemed plentiful after spring practice, he learned the safety positions to provide depth there; an early injury to Peters made him available at both positions, and he was quickly moved back to corner after the ejections in the Egg Bowl.
In the worst-case scenario that MSU is down three starters — Peters, Dantzler and Abram — for some period of time in the bowl game, it will be a lot to handle. This team has shown the ability to thrive under personnel constraints; it borderline welcomes the challenge of having to do it again.
“It’s remarkable,” Smitherman said. “This team, we’ve been doubted all year, to come back and finish the way we did and go to a great bowl game, it’s a great feeling.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Brett Hudson on Twitter @Brett_Hudson
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 32 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.