STARKVILLE — Mississippi State’s offensive players had barely picked themselves up off the ground when the whistle blew again.
Immediately, they threw themselves back to the turf. From there, the cycle repeated.
The Bulldogs’ offense, outfitted in maroon jerseys, was sentenced to plenty of up-downs as punishment for Caleb Ducking’s fumble late in Saturday’s scrimmage at Davis Wade Stadium — and perhaps its overall performance.
On the other side of Scott Field, the white-clad defense looked on — no extra exercise needed.
Coach Mike Leach called the Bulldogs’ first spring scrimmage “pretty even,” but it was the defense that made some of the event’s most memorable plays.
“I thought our first group could have played better on offense,” Leach said.
Among the defensive highlights were Ducking’s fumble, picked up by linebacker Nathaniel Watson and returned most of the length of the field for a touchdown, and a pick-six by safety Corey Ellington early on. Ellington seized a tipped pass thrown by redshirt freshman quarterback Sawyer Robertson and took it to the house.
Mostly, though, what counted Saturday was the Bulldogs simply acclimating to an environment that will look a lot different on seven game days in the fall.
“Exposure in the stadium is huge,” Leach said. “That’s why we do it every Thursday in the season.”
Like every team at this point, Mississippi State has a ways to go. Leach termed his team’s performance during Saturday’s scrimmage “inconsistent,” “frantic” and “hesitant.”
Overall, though, the third-year Bulldogs coach was pleased.
“I thought it was a pretty good first scrimmage,” Leach said. “I don’t think it was a great first scrimmage; I thought it was a good one. I thought it was good work and a good starting point.”
Leach reiterated his opinion that a sign of a good scrimmage is that “everybody is pissed” afterward — if one side is too happy, that’s a bad omen for the opposing unit.
On Saturday, he saw no such imbalance.
While the defense had its day with two interceptions of Robertson, Watson’s fumble return and a fumble by quarterback Will Rogers, the offense had its share of impressive plays.
Running back Ke’Travion Hargrove sped for a 35-yard touchdown on a shovel pass by Chance Lovertich, outstripping the defense to the left pylon. Rufus Harvey made a great catch for a 19-yard touchdown in the back of the end zone, and Robertson later improvised to set up a nice throw to Antonio Harmon for a score.
Leach said Harvey has been “uncanny good” for a while although nagging injuries sometimes broke that streak.
“But he’s played real well for the last year, really, and always finds the end zone,” Leach said. “I mean, if Rufus gets enough reps he’s always going to find his way to an end zone. And that’s a pretty good knack to have.”
Despite plenty of pass attempts and a line of scrimmage that moved arbitrarily throughout the game, Mississippi State quarterbacks combined to find the end zone, too. Robertson and Lovertich each had two touchdown passes, while Rogers had one. (Running back Dillon Johnson also scored a 2-yard touchdown on an option pitch.)
“I thought when Sawyer settled in, he played real well,” Leach said. “After his interceptions, I thought he played real well. I don’t think Will ever got into that rhythm. It’s tough when you’ve got limited reps.”
The Bulldogs will get more chances to improve in next Saturday’s Maroon and White spring game, the format of which Leach said has yet to be decided. Last season, the team was split in two, but this year, it could have the same offense versus defense style of Saturday’s scrimmage.
But whatever happens, Mississippi State won’t just phone it in. Leach promised his team will “light it up” for any fans in attendance.
“I’m not a believer in this ‘spring game, just go through the motions, run a couple of drills and wave at everybody,’” Leach said. “I hate that. I can’t even fathom that on any level.”
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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