STARKVILLE — Zach Arnett needs Mississippi State to be prepared for every game in three ways.

The first is mental preparation, which comes from watching film and playing against the scout team in practice so that come game day, the Bulldogs can let their natural instincts take over. MSU also has to prepare physically, as football games often simply come down to which team can outman the other.

But just as important, Arnett said, is emotional preparation. After Saturday’s 27-13 loss to Auburn, Arnett said his team lacked intensity early on and that he and the Bulldogs’ coaching staff could have done a better job getting the players into a better emotional state for the game.

“You have to get yourself worked up into a state that is different from practice,” Arnett said Monday. “Coaches and players, when you watch film, you can see a team that is emotionally jacked up to play, and you see times on film where it doesn’t look that way. There’s what your natural talent is capable of, and then there’s what you are actually capable of, which is always a little bit more. That comes down to more than just physical ability.”

The good news is that MSU (4-4, 1-4 Southeastern Conference) should not have a hard time getting fired up for Saturday night’s game against Kentucky. The Bulldogs are back home for the first time in nearly a month, it will be Homecoming in Starkville, and MSU is honoring the 1998 team that won the SEC West title and advanced to the program’s only conference championship game.

The Bulldogs’ quarterback situation remains up in the air. Vanderbilt transfer Mike Wright has started the last two games in place of the injured Will Rogers, who remains sidelined by a shoulder injury. Behind Wright is true freshman Chris Parson, who chose MSU over four other SEC offers — including one from Kentucky — but has not played a snap this year.

“There’s a chance (we could see Parson),” Arnett said. “It’s Monday, and I don’t think it’s my best interest to talk about the specifics of the game plan.”

Starting running back Jo’Quavious “Woody” Marks also missed the Auburn game after battling leg injuries for the past month, and freshman tight end/offensive lineman Malik Ellis was out as well.

The bigger concern, though, remains the defense, which took a big step back from a dominant performance against Arkansas. The Bulldogs registered four sacks against the Razorbacks but none against the Tigers, also failing to create any turnovers.

“Defensively, we’re disappointed with the execution in the first half. We obviously got shredded pretty good,” Arnett said. “The game got away from us too much, and by the time we started turning it on, the game was too far out of hand and time becomes your biggest enemy. Offensively, without your starting quarterback and starting tailback, points are going to be a little tougher to come by.”

Scouting Kentucky

The Wildcats (5-3, 2-3) opened the season with five straight wins, with their most impressive victory being a 33-14 shellacking of Florida. But up against a much tougher schedule in October, Kentucky has now lost three in a row at the hands of ranked foes Georgia, Missouri and Tennessee.

Devin Leary, who spent the last four years at North Carolina State, has been perfectly serviceable as the Wildcats’ starting quarterback, with 218.6 passing yards per game and 16 touchdowns against seven interceptions. Kentucky’s offense, though, goes through running back Ray Davis, who has racked up an SEC-leading 823 rushing yards at a clip of 6.5 yards per carry with nine touchdowns.

“Kentucky is coming off as difficult a three-game stretch as any team in the country,” Arnett said. “They know exactly who they are. They are physical (and) incredibly fundamentally sound. (Davis) is as electric of a back as I have seen all year. He is as explosive of a runner as we’ll have faced up to this point.”

The Wildcats rank in the middle of the conference in most defensive categories but have a true star in defensive back Maxwell Hairston, who leads the SEC with five interceptions — two of which he returned for touchdowns in a win at Vanderbilt.

MSU has dominated Kentucky at home in recent years, having defeated the Wildcats six straight times at Davis Wade Stadium, while Kentucky has likewise had its way with the Bulldogs in Lexington, winning the teams’ last four meetings at Kroger Field.

“They consistently have been in the upper echelon of the league defensively,” Arnett said. “It should be a great matchup. Hopefully we have a great environment here.”