STARKVILLE — The offense Jeff Lebby has always coordinated, and the offense Mississippi State’s head coach installed in spring practice and fall camp, was all about hustling to the line of scrimmage and snapping the ball before the defense could get set.
But when the Bulldogs faced their toughest opponent yet at No. 1 Texas on Sept. 28 — with a true freshman quarterback starting for the first time, no less — MSU slowed things down considerably. Realizing that possessing the ball for as long as possible was their best hope to pull off the upset, the Bulldogs snapped the ball every 28.73 seconds of game time in which they had the ball, by far their slowest pace of the season.
“Tempo is unique. Not every team can do tempo, so we pride ourselves on being able to do tempo,” tight end Justin Ball said. “But at the same time, we know we need to be a well-rounded offense, so being able to slow down sometimes, we own it. We were able to do it at Texas pretty successfully. Now we have to make sure we finish in the red zone and put points on the board.”
MSU held the ball for nearly 35 minutes against the Longhorns, compared to less than 23 minutes in each of the first three games. Prior to the Texas game, the Bulldogs’ slowest pace in terms of seconds per play was 23.05 in the season opener against Eastern Kentucky, still MSU’s only win of the year.
Maintaining possession is all but impossible without establishing the run, and the Bulldogs picked up 12 first downs on the ground against the Longhorns, a week after earning 15 against Florida. For all of the offensive line’s struggles in pass protection, the unit has made considerable progress in run blocking.
“We’re all in shape now that we have practiced tempo for so long. Going slow felt like we were going even slower,” right tackle Albert Reese IV said. “Our bodies were adjusted for the heat, because it was hot that day (in Austin).”
With MSU (1-4, 0-2 Southeastern Conference) traveling to face another top-5 opponent in Georgia this weekend, slowing the game down may again be on the menu, as much as it goes against the identity of Lebby’s offenses at his previous coaching stops.
“It really is more of a week-to-week thing,” Lebby said. “Establishing the run was going to be something that was critical for us as an identity, as a program. My best units that I’ve ever had, had incredible balance. That is who we want to be. We want to have great balance, we want to be able to run the football really well. That’s going to be something that’s important for us this Saturday and moving forward.”
Leading tackler Smith ready to go after missing Texas game
It may not be ideal to have a safety leading your team — or in the Bulldogs’ case, the entire SEC — in tackles, but sophomore Isaac Smith was always right around the ball through the first four weeks this year.
In the third quarter against Florida, though, Gators running back Montrell Johnson Jr. pushed Smith to the ground for what was called an illegal blindside block. Smith was on the ground for several minutes before walking off on his own power, and he was out the following week in Austin after racking up 51 tackles through three games and roughly two and a half quarters. He forced a fumble earlier in the Florida game, which cornerback Kelley Jones recovered.
“It comes down to my energy levels on the field,” Smith said. “I love just being around the football, because you never know what can happen if you get to the football. That’s just a big part of my game. I don’t think about (my statistics) too much when I’m playing. I just think about getting to the ball and trying to produce a turnover.”
Smith was a game-time decision against the Longhorns and warmed up in uniform, but felt off after hitting a teammate in a pregame drill, and he and Lebby decided to hold him out.
Even without their leading tackler, MSU’s defense showed signs of progress in that game, forcing two turnovers and staying within one score until late in the third quarter.
“The bond we’re building right now and the vibes in the building, you can tell something special is about to happen here,” Smith said. “I just want people to buckle in for it.”
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