STARKVILLE — Mike Leach has had plenty of battles with Texas A&M in the past.
When the Mississippi State coach was at Texas Tech, the Red Raiders and Aggies faced off every season as Big 12 Conference rivals. Tech won seven of the 10 matchups between the two, but three of the 10 games were decided by a touchdown or less.
“They were great games, and it was fun,” Leach said during Monday’s press conference. “It was fun to play Texas A&M and what a great setting to play. They were intense games. It was always intense.”
The same was true last year as Leach beat the Aggies for the first time at Mississippi State, a 26-22 road upset last Oct. 2.
The Bulldogs notched one of their three wins over a ranked opponent in front of a big crowd in College Station.
“It was a good game,” Leach said. “We played really hard, but we played pretty sharp, too.”
Mississippi State (3-1, 0-1 Southeastern Conference) will have to replicate that performance as Texas A&M (3-1, 1-0 SEC) comes into Saturday’s game at Davis Wade Stadium as the No. 17 team in the country.
The Aggies come off a 23-21 win over Arkansas at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Mississippi State rolled Bowling Green 45-14 on Saturday in Starkville in a performance Leach was happy with.
“I thought we played together pretty good at times,” he said. “I thought when we didn’t play together, it showed. We played fast for the most part, which I thought was good as far as the tempo. We have plenty of work to do, but we got a week better, so that’s always good.”
Injuries to left tackle Kwatrivous Johnson, defensive tackle Jaden Crumedy and running back Jo’quavious Marks leave questions Leach will never answer publicly, but the Bulldogs are at relative full strength for Saturday.
The same can’t be said of Texas A&M, which lost leading receiver Ainias Smith for the season against the Razorbacks. Smith has a team-high 291 receiving yards; the next-highest Aggie, Evan Stewart, has just 141.
Texas A&M’s offense struggled mightily in an upset loss to Appalachian State on Sept. 10, but the Aggies rebounded to beat Miami and then Arkansas.
A&M has given up only 11.8 points per game through its first four contests, tied for eighth best nationally.
“They’re big, lanky guys, and they run well,” Leach said of the Aggies’ defense. “Once they see the ball, they do a good job of chasing the ball, really. They’re athletic, and they run to the ball.”
To put up points, Mississippi State will need another big game from quarterback Will Rogers, who rebounded from a subpar performance against LSU to dominate Bowling Green with six touchdown passes and more than 400 yards.
Rogers was impressive in last season’s win at Kyle Field, going 46 of 59 for 408 yards and three touchdowns.
“He just kind of focused on his job,” Leach remembered. “He didn’t make too much out of it: he just focused on the next play and his job. I thought the calmer he played, the calmer our offensive unit played.”
That night, Leach won his eighth game all time against the Aggies, a potential reason for rancor directed at him by Texas A&M fans.
He said Monday he never shared the same feelings.
“I never felt like I really hated them,” he said. “I’m sure they hated me, which is fine. Your liking me is not mutually exclusive to me liking you.”
Saturday’s game, which kicks off at 3 p.m. on the SEC Network, is just the beginning for Mississippi State.
After A&M comes to town, the Bulldogs welcome in No. 20 Arkansas at 11 a.m. Oct. 8. Trips to No. 7 Kentucky and No. 2 Alabama follow.
Leach made it clear Mississippi State must focus on each opponent in turn.
“Our schedule, especially what’s coming up, it would be pretty tough to look ahead,” he said. “… It would be monumentally stupid to look ahead on anybody.”
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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