STARKVILLE — When Mike Leach and Mississippi State take the field Saturday, a familiar face will be in unfamiliar colors.
Athletic director John Cohen left MSU on Monday to take the athletic director position at Auburn, which just so happens to be visiting Davis Wade Stadium at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.
In an odd twist of fate, Cohen will don orange and blue this weekend in Starkville, but Leach said Monday it won’t affect much.
“Whoever you’re playing that particular week has a funny way of keeping you distracted from all that stuff — from all the little ironies and things that are cute and fun to think about once you’re retired,” Leach said.
Even a Tigers team in complete disarray is enough to keep Leach occupied.
Auburn (3-5, 1-4 Southeastern Conference) fired head coach Bryan Harsin and much of his offensive staff on Monday, shaking things up considerably ahead of Saturday night’s game at MSU (5-3, 2-3 SEC).
Not even Harsin’s ouster in the middle of his second season will change Mississippi State’s preparation, though.
Leach said he doesn’t expect the Tigers to overhaul everything on short notice under interim head coach Carnell “Cadillac” Williams, the team’s running backs coach and a former star at the same position.
And while Auburn might not have a head coach, the Tigers “definitely have players” of whom the Bulldogs must remain aware.
“Auburn’s full of a bunch of players who had offers all over the conference,” Leach said. “Us and everybody else wanted those guys on their team.”
Despite the Tigers’ talent, it hasn’t gone to plan on The Plains so far this season.
Auburn beat Mercer and San Jose State in nonconference play before eking out an overtime win over Missouri on Sept. 24.
The Tigers have lost to Penn State, LSU, Georgia, Ole Miss and now Arkansas, which won 41-27 on Saturday at Jordan-Hare Stadium.
Compared to Auburn’s string of four straight losses, Mississippi State’s stretch of two consecutive defeats — both on the road at Kentucky and Alabama — doesn’t look as bad.
The Bulldogs were ranked No. 16 in the country going into that Oct. 15 game in Lexington, and that ranking has long since disappeared.
But an open date last week helped MSU distance itself from its struggles, Leach said.
“I did think we needed to step away a little bit, and it provided that,” he said.
Leach said figuring out a workout and practice schedule with the bye week was tricky given a varied history.
He said working hard all week has led to both big wins and ugly losses, as has giving players all week off.
Ultimately, Leach decided to let his players take off the first part of last week before two “pretty good” practices later on, including a strong session Thursday.
The Bulldogs will hope to put their recent poor play in the past by the time Auburn arrives.
And although uncertainty now surrounds Mississippi State thanks to Cohen’s departure, Leach said he’ll have no problem blocking things out in the same fashion.
“I just ignore it and just worry about the day to day — the next meeting, the next practice,” he said.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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