Mississippi State (1-0) visits Arizona State (1-0) on Saturday at 9:30 p.m. Central Time (7:30 local) at Mountain America Stadium in Tempe. Here’s who has the edge at each position between the Bulldogs and the Sun Devils.
Quarterback
Blake Shapen was excellent in his MSU debut against Eastern Kentucky, completing 15 of 20 passes for 247 yards and three touchdowns, and more importantly, he showed off the deep ball the Bulldogs’ offense needs to be successful. Redshirt freshman Sam Leavitt, a transfer from Michigan State, was solid in his first game at ASU, but a lot of his passing yards came after the catch and he does not have nearly as much experience at the college level.
Edge: Mississippi State
Running back
It was a mixed bag here for MSU last week, with Davon Booth scoring his first touchdown as a Bulldog after Keyvone Lee got the majority of the handoffs early on. Junior college transfer Johnnie Daniels is also part of the rotation while Jeffery Pittman remains away from the team. The Sun Devils have a deep backfield led by Cam Skattebo, DeCarlos Brooks and Kyson Brown, and perhaps their best back, Raleek Brown, is expected to return this week after missing the opening game with an injury.
Edge: Arizona State
Wide receiver/tight end
The Bulldogs found ways to stretch the field with several wideouts last week, with Jordan Mosley, Mario Craver and Kevin Coleman all hauling in deep shots. Creed Whittemore also took an end-around handoff for a touchdown, and tight end Seydou Traore was key in downfield blocking. Arizona State’s top returning receiver was Troy Omeire, who did not have a catch last week. Jordyn Tyson led the Sun Devils with four catches against Wyoming.
Edge: Mississippi State
Offensive line
Both teams completely retooled their offensive fronts in the transfer portal, so while they both have plenty of experience, they’re still learning how to play together as a group. MSU’s starting five is more or less set, while Arizona State still had some ongoing position battles heading into Week 1.
Edge: Even
Defensive line
The Bulldogs weren’t able to generate a whole lot of push up front against an FCS team, albeit one with a strong offensive line. Kalvin Dinkins’ uncertain status for Saturday night does not help matters. Statistically, Purdue transfer Sulaiman Kpaka was the group’s standout against EKU. The Sun Devils recorded three sacks in the Wyoming game, two of them belonging to defensive linemen, and held the Cowboys to 1.3 yards per rushing attempt.
Edge: Arizona State
Linebackers
Branden Jennings and Zakari Tillman were both outstanding for MSU last week even though neither started the game. If they, John Lewis and Nic Mitchell can fly around on the outside, Stone Blanton can freely patrol the middle of the field. New Mexico State transfer Keyshaun Elliott was Arizona State’s best defensive player a week ago, with seven tackles including one for a loss as well as an interception. Another impact transfer, Zyrus Fiaseu, opened the scoring with a pick six.
Edge: Arizona State
Secondary
The Bulldogs got a breakout performance from sophomore Isaac Smith, who had 11 tackles and a key pass breakup. But safety Corey Ellington remains out, and cornerbacks Traveon Wright and DeAgo Brumfield are also likely unavailable. The Sun Devils added a couple of key transfers, USC’s Xavion Alford and Oregon’s Cole Martin, but their secondary was not really tested last week because the front six played so well.
Edge: Even
Special teams
MSU kicker Kyle Ferrie missed a 25-yard field goal in the EKU game, although that was because of a poor snap from long snapper Hayes Hammond. Coleman was a weapon as a punt returner, consistently setting the Bulldogs up with excellent field position. Arizona State’s Ian Hershey was 2-for-3 on field goals against Wyoming, missing from 38, and punter Kanyon Floyd boomed a 51-yarder.
Edge: Mississippi State
Starters
Mississippi State
Offense
QB 2 Blake Shapen Sr.
RB 24 Keyvone Lee Sr. OR 21 Davon Booth Sr.
WR 3 Kevin Coleman Jr.
WR 6 Jordan Mosley Jr.
WR 14 Trent Hudson Jr.
TE 18 Seydou Traore R-Jr. OR 84 Justin Ball Sr.
LT 66 Makylan Pounders Jr.
LG 75 Jacoby Jackson Jr.
C 67 Ethan Miner Sr.
RG 77 Marlon Martinez Sr.
RT 76 Albert Reese IV Jr.
Defense
DT 22 Kedrick Bingley-Jones Jr. OR 23 Trevion Williams R-Fr.
DT 35 Kalvin Dinkins So. OR 8 Sulaiman Kpaka Sr.
DE 9 De’Monte Russell Sr.
JACK 11 Ty Cooper Jr. OR 44 Branden Jennings Jr.
MLB 7 Stone Blanton Jr.
DIME 40 Nick Mitchell Jr. OR 5 John Lewis Jr.
STAR 3 Brylan Lanier Jr.
FS 2 Isaac Smith So.
SS 21 Hunter Washington Jr.
CB 1 Kelley Jones R-Fr.
CB 14 Brice Pollock So.
Special teams
K 80 Kyle Ferrie So.
P 82 Nick Barr-Mira Sr.
Arizona State
Offense
QB 10 Sam Leavitt R-Fr.
RB 4 Cam Skattebo Sr.
WR 1 Xavier Guillory R-Sr. OR 12 Malik McClain Sr.
WR 5 Melquan Stovall Gr. OR 8 Jake Smith R-Sr.
WR 0 Jordyn Tyson R-So.
TE 7 Chamon Metayer R-Jr. OR 18 Markeston Douglas R-Jr.
LT 70 Emmit Bohle Gr. OR 65 Josh Atkins R-Jr.
LG 62 Ben Coleman Gr.
C 79 Leif Fautanu R-Sr.
RG 55 Cade Briggs R-Sr. OR 77 Kyle Scott R-Jr.
RT 58 Max Iheanachor Sr.
Defense
DE 95 Justin Wodtly R-Jr. OR 15 Elijah O’Neal Sr.
DT 99 C.J. Fite So. OR 92 Zac Swanson R-So.
DT 5 Jeff Clark Gr. OR 98 Jacob Rich Kongaika Jr.
DE 10 Clayton Smith R-Jr.
LB 44 Keyshaun Elliott Jr.
LB 30 Zyrus Fiaseu R-Jr. OR 8 Jordan Crook Jr.
CB 12 Javan Robinson R-So.
CB 1 Keith Abney II So.
NB 7 Shamari Simmons Gr. OR 0 Cole Martin So.
S 2 Xavion Alford R-Jr.
S 4 Miles Rowser Jr. OR 20 Kamari Wilson R-So.
Special teams
K 30 Ian Hershey R-So.
P 31 Kanyon Floyd Fr.
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