Mississippi State (7-4, 3-4 Southeastern Conference) visits No. 20 Ole Miss (8-3, 4-3 SEC) in the 119th Battle for the Golden Egg rivalry game at 6 p.m. Thursday in Oxford.
Here’s who has the advantage at each position between the Bulldogs and the Rebels in the 2022 Egg Bowl.
Quarterback
Will Rogers dominated East Tennessee State on Saturday, completing 30 of 37 passes including five touchdowns. Rogers has 32 touchdowns and five picks on the season and sports a completion percentage of 68.1. For Ole Miss, USC transfer Jaxson Dart has been inconsistent with 16 touchdowns, eight interceptions and a 60.4 percent mark. Dart has also run for 552 yards for the Rebels, while Rogers is not a rushing threat.
Edge: Mississippi State
Running back
Dillon Johnson did not play Saturday against ETSU but should be available for the Egg Bowl. Johnson now trails Jo’quavious Marks in rushing yards with 415 to Marks’ 456. Ole Miss has two dynamic running backs in Quinshon Judkins and Zach Evans. Judkins, a true freshman, has run for 1,385 yards this season, while Evans returned from a concussion suffered against Alabama to have a big game at Arkansas. Evans has run for 899 yards this season on almost seven yards per carry.
Edge: Ole Miss
Wide receiver/tight end
Mississippi State transfer Malik Heath has emerged as a legitimate receiving threat for Ole Miss, posting 754 yards and four touchdowns this season. Both marks are just behind Jonathan Mingo — Rogers’ high school teammate at Brandon — who has 768 yards and five scores for the Rebels. For MSU, Rara Thomas is the leading receiver at 599 yards; Caleb Ducking (450 yards) is the top red-zone threat with eight touchdowns this season.
Edge: Even
Offensive line
Ole Miss has allowed just 12 sacks in 10 games, tied for 15th best in FBS. Mississippi State, meanwhile, has given up 22 sacks this year. The Rebels run for 5.75 yards per carry — fourth in the nation — while MSU averages just 3.69 yards per attempt. MSU’s O-line has struggled against better opponents late in the season.
Edge: Ole Miss
Defensive line
The return of Jaden Crumedy against Auburn bolstered Mississippi State’s defensive line, which held ETSU to just 2.8 yards per carry and did a decent job against Georgia as well. Ole Miss allowed 335 rushing yards against Arkansas and has been susceptible to the run all season, boasting the No. 90 rushing defense in the country. MSU’s run defense ranks 69th.
Edge: Mississippi State
Linebacker
Troy Brown is Ole Miss’ leading tackler with 77, while Nathaniel Watson has 98 for the Bulldogs and Jett Johnson has 93. Tackles are far from everything, but Watson and Tyrus Wheat are MSU’s two top players in terms of sacks. Khari Coleman has 32 tackles and 3.5 sacks for Ole Miss, but the Rebels’ struggles to stop the run have been well documented.
Edge: Mississippi State
Secondary
Mississippi State has one of the better pass defenses in the country, allowing just 6.4 yards per pass attempt this season. Cornerback Emmanuel Forbes is tied for the national lead in interceptions with six, recording his sixth career pick-six against ETSU. Ole Miss allows 6.8 yards per pass, but the Rebels have only six interceptions — as many as Forbes alone — while the Bulldogs have 14.
Edge: Mississippi State
Special teams
Mississippi State is just 10 of 14 on field goals this season after a long-distance miss from Massimo Biscardi on Saturday, although Biscardi has improved of late. The Bulldogs’ punting has scuffled, too, with a blocked punt against ETSU. MSU has been dynamic in the return game, one of four teams with punt return and kickoff return touchdowns this year. Ole Miss’ Jonathan Cruz is 12 of 14 on field goals and 6 of 7 from beyond 40 yards. Ole Miss is average in both return areas.
Edge: Even
Starters
Mississippi State
Offense
QB 2 Will Rogers Jr.
RB 7 Jo’quavious Marks Jr.
-or 23 Dillon Johnson Jr.
-or 22 Simeon Price Fr.
WR 0 Rara Thomas So.
WR 85 Austin Williams Gr.
WR 82 Rufus Harvey So.
WR 4 Caleb Ducking Sr.
LT 66 Kwatrivous Johnson Sr.
LG 64 Nick Jones Jr.
C 63 LaQuinston Sharp Gr.
RG 57 Cole Smith Sr.
RT 58 Kameron Jones Jr.
-or 76 Albert Reese IV Fr.
Defense
DE 6 Jordan Davis Gr.
NT 93 Cameron Young Sr.
DT 94 Jaden Crumedy Gr.
SLB 2 Tyrus Wheat Sr.
MLB 14 Nathaniel Watson Sr.
WLB 44 Jett Johnson Gr.
CB 13 Emmanuel Forbes Jr.
S 8 Jackie Matthews Gr.
S 19 Collin Duncan Sr.
S 0 Jalen Green Sr.
CB 3 Decamerion Richardson Jr.
Special teams
K 29 Massimo Biscardi Gr.
P 56 Archer Trafford Sr.
-or 88 George Georgopoulos Gr.
Ole Miss
Offense
QB 2 Jaxson Dart So.
RB 6 Zach Evans Jr.
WR 1 Jonathan Mingo Sr.
WR 8 Malik Heath Sr.
WR 9 Jaylon Robinson Sr.
-or 11 Jordan Watkins Jr.
TE 81 Casey Kelly Jr.
LT 71 Jayden Williams Fr.
LG 64 Nick Broeker Sr.
C 54 Caleb Warren Jr.
RG 78 Jeremy James Jr.
RT 57 Micah Pettus Fr.
Defense
DE 2 Cedric Johnson Jr.
DT 89 JJ Pegues Jr.
NT 38 KD Hill Sr.
DE 95 Tavius Robinson Sr.
LB 11 Austin Keys So.
-or 23 Khari Coleman Jr.
LB 8 Troy Brown Sr.
DB 3 Otis Reese Sr.
CB 7 Deantre Prince Sr.
SS 1 Isheem Young Jr.
FS 21 AJ Finley Sr.
DB 0 Tysheem Johnson So.
-or 13 Ladarius Tennison So.
CB 20 Davison Igbinosun Fr.
-or 6 Miles Battle Sr.
Special teams
K 14 Jonathan Cruz Sr.
P 12 Fraser Masin Jr.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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