STARKVILLE — Asked if he was happy about giving up only 17 points on defense to Memphis, the nation’s leading offensive team heading into Saturday’s game, Mississippi State defensive coordinator Zach Arnett said no.
Zero, he agreed, would be more like it.
“That’s typically the goal for all of us defensive guys, yeah,” he said.
While a shutout is far from likely, Arnett and the Bulldogs continue to keep their goals set high as Mississippi State (2-1) hosts LSU (2-1) at 11 a.m. Saturday.
The second-year coordinator will have his hands full against a Tigers team that has scored 83 points across its past two games, big wins over McNeese State and Central Michigan. Throughout their offense, talented players abound.
“They’re at LSU for a reason,” Arnett said. “Really talented, obviously executing at a really high level. You see the speed out there at wide receiver, and then you see the size of their linemen and then their ability to get off the ball and move people. It’s a sight to behold.”
Quarterback Max Johnson is at the helm of the Tigers’ offense, but wide receiver Kayshon Boutte has been LSU’s most dynamic playmaker so far with 20 catches, 224 yards and 6 touchdowns through three games.
The sophomore figures to be a tough matchup for whichever Mississippi State defenders he lines up against.
“We’ll just match Martin (Emerson) and (Emmanuel) Forbes up on him every single snap,” Arnett joked. “They do a great job moving him around and finding ways to get him the ball: whether it’s on fly sweeps, put him in the slot one play, motion him to get a matchup.”
Running back Corey Kiner had a solid game against the Chippewas with 12 carries for 76 yards and a score. He and Tyrion Davis-Price will lead the LSU backfield on Saturday.
“He had a heck of a game, obviously made some great cuts,” Arnett said of Kiner. “He and the rest of the running backs are going to be a challenge for us to slow down.”
But Mississippi State has done that before. The Bulldogs limited NC State running backs Zonovan Knight and Ricky Person, Jr. to 50 yards on 16 carries.
Even against Memphis, MSU allowed just 246 total yards to a team that came in averaging 633.5, a sign Arnett’s defense is continuing to find success — despite the contest’s outcome.
“The secondary covered pretty darn well in man coverage,” he said. “I put them in that a lot. A couple opportunities to make a couple plays here and there and maybe it’s the difference, but all in all I thought the guys executed the game plan pretty well.”
Brock blames self for punt return TD
What cost the Bulldogs in a big way Saturday was, of course, special teams.
Calvin Austin III’s punt return — and a controversial call — allowed Memphis to stretch its fourth-quarter lead to two scores. While Mississippi State appeared to down the football and the back judge began to signal the play dead, no whistle blew and the 94-yard touchdown stood.
“We sat there. We put a knee on it. We had our hand on it. But they’ve got to rule us down, and obviously the official looked like he did,” special teams coordinator Matt Brock said Wednesday.
But after months of talk and practice of downing procedures among Brock’s players, the coordinator said there’s only one person with whom the blame lies.
And it’s not somebody outfitted in black-and-white stripes.
“We can blame whoever we want to blame,” Brock said. “The fact of the matter is we didn’t execute, and that’s my fault. There isn’t anybody else to blame but me.”
Brock has also been dealt a tough hand with the as yet unexplained absences of starting kicker Brandon Ruiz and starting punter Tucker Day. Scott Goodman has been handling kickoffs and Nolan McCord has been placekicking since halftime of the NC State contest, while Archer Trafford punted against Memphis.
“I’ve really been proud of the depth that we’ve shown there — the guys who can step in and make an impact,” Brock said.
Leach: Pass rush must improve
After just one sack in the Sept. 4 season opener against Louisiana Tech, Mississippi State’s pass rush stepped things up with a four-sack performance against NC State the following week.
But the Bulldogs came back to earth with just one sack of Memphis quarterback Seth Henigan on Saturday.
They’ll need to return to form to affect the play of LSU quarterback Max Johnson this week.
“I think it’s really important,” Leach said on Wednesday’s SEC teleconference. “I think we need to keep getting better at that.”
The Bulldogs might have some help. With starting offensive lineman Cam Wire out for the past two games, LSU is in need of a replacement. According to Wilson Alexander of The Advocate and The Times-Picayune, coach Ed Orgeron walked into the Tigers’ offensive line room Tuesday with a question: “Who’s going to be our left tackle?”
Whoever he is, Mississippi State hopes to be ready to overpower him and the rest of LSU’s blockers en route to Johnson on Saturday.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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