Game week is upon us, and Mississippi State opens the 2024 campaign at home against FCS opponent Eastern Kentucky for a 5 p.m. kickoff Saturday on ESPN+ and SEC Network Plus.
The Colonels finished 5-6 last year, though they did play a close game against Kentucky in Week 2. Walt Wells is entering his fifth season as EKU’s head coach, with a 21-20 record from 2020-23, and his team did receive two votes in the preseason FCS Coaches Poll. To learn more about this Colonels team, The Commercial Dispatch chatted with Cameron Drummond, a sports reporter for the Lexington Herald-Leader.
Editor’s note: This conversation has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity and brevity.
The Dispatch: What is the state of Eastern Kentucky’s team heading into Saturday’s season opener?
Cameron Drummond: There’s a lot of notable changes for Eastern Kentucky this season, especially on the offensive side. Legendary six-year EKU quarterback Parker McKinney is now gone, and his replacement who will start Saturday is Matt Morrissey, who was at Western Illinois last season and threw for nearly 2,000 yards and 13 touchdowns with the Leathernecks. EKU also lost its leading rusher from a season ago, and Wells told media members earlier this week that fall camp has seen a revolving door when it comes to receiving options.
In addition to those offensive changes, EKU’s defense will also be looking for improvement after consecutive seasons in which it has been awful. The Colonels have allowed an average of 449 yards of total offense in 2022 and 476 yards per game in 2023.
After making the FCS Playoffs in 2022, EKU went a disappointing 5-6 last season. The 2023 season was noteworthy for the amount of close games the Colonels played: EKU had seven games last season that were decided by six points or fewer.
The Dispatch: What are the keys to Eastern Kentucky’s success on offense?
Drummond: First and foremost, success on this side of the ball will depend on Morrissey’s ability to step into the starting role with confidence, and use his college experience (he’s previously played at Trinity Valley Community College, Northern Iowa and Western Illinois) to help EKU produce. The Colonels consistently had one of the best offenses in FCS with McKinney behind center, and while it’ll be impossible to replace a guy who was one of the best passers in FCS history, Morrissey needs to at least help keep the offense above average.
Wells has extensive experience in college football as an offensive line guru, so it’s no surprise the Colonels have produced a ton of offensive line talent relative to their playing level. Sixth-year offensive lineman Payton Collins is this year’s standout. He was a unanimous all-conference selection last season.
New featured back Joshua Carter is also a sixth-year player who began his college career at South Alabama. Carter had 714 rushing yards last season and seems capable of carrying the load for the running attack.
I expect there will be some growing pains, especially early in the season, as Morrissey establishes a rapport with his receiving targets, the offense gets accustomed to a new quarterback behind center, etc. EKU’s top returning receiver is tight end Hunter Brown, and he had only 387 receiving yards last season. Someone has to step up in the receiving department.
The Dispatch: What does the Colonels’ defense need to do to slow down Mississippi State’s offense?
Drummond: Well, they’ll need to play a lot better than they’ve played in the last two seasons. Giving up chunk plays and allowing opponents to generate gobs of offense has hampered EKU in recent years, and players and coaches have spoken this offseason about the need to be better in limiting explosive plays, among other targeted areas for improvement.
The good news, such that it exists, for EKU on defense is that there’s a lot of experience on this side of the ball for the Colonels. This includes defensive back Mike Smith Jr., a Reese’s Bowl Watch List nominee who was third on the team with 56 tackles last season and is one of EKU’s team captains this season.
It’ll be a tall ask for the defensive line to register significant penetration against Mississippi State on Saturday, so the secondary is going to have to carry the load to give that unit time to fight at the line of scrimmage.
The Dispatch: Eastern Kentucky will win if…
Drummond: On offense, the Colonels are able to quickly establish the passing game with Morrissey and whichever receiving options step up to the challenge, and EKU’s veteran offensive line is able to contain the line of scrimmage. On defense, the Colonels show a remarkable improvement when it comes to getting into the defensive backfield and limiting explosive plays for Mississippi State. This would have to be aided by a lot of Game One jitters and misfiring from the Bulldogs during Jeff Lebby’s head coaching debut.
Last season, EKU began the season at Cincinnati. In a game that a lot of people (myself included) thought could have been relatively competitive, EKU trailed 42-7 at halftime and lost 66-13.
The Dispatch: Eastern Kentucky will lose if…
Drummond: Everything goes the way it’s supposed to.
Morrissey and the EKU offense can generate a few scoring drives and there will be some flashes of what can come later this season against FCS opponents, but I think there will also be a fair amount of three-and-outs and timing issues as new players fit into place and become comfortable with one another.
The defense has a lot of room for improvement after the past two seasons, and asking that unit to show a near 180-degree turnaround, which is what’s needed to win in Starkville, is a monumental ask for Week 1.
I don’t see much here to give MSU concern about an upset. I think Las Vegas has the line for this game just about right (around 25 points).
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