STARKVILLE – The Mississippi State defense was reeling, but had seemingly done just enough damage control to keep from collapsing before halftime. No. 5 Georgia was up 17-7 with 30 seconds to play in the half, and sent the offense back onto the field on fourth down to play hard count chicken with the MSU defense.
MSU had already given up a targeting penalty, resulting in the ejection of Jahron Manning, and a pass interference on the drive, and when Jaray Bledsoe jumped offside, UGA was gifted a first down for the third time on the drive.
With 30 seconds left, Georgia’s offense moved quickly to score, taking a 24-7 halftime lead, and came out firing in the third quarter with back-to-back explosive plays for scores.
In the span of just over five minutes, Georgia had scored 21 points to take a 38-7 lead.
“To me, that’s where the game gets completely away from us. Really frustrating because we have the ability to get off the field, we have the offsides, and we have the targeting in their two-minute drive as they go down and score a touchdown with 11 seconds left… We’re not good enough to do those things and be able to overcome that.”
The series at the end of the first half followed a failed fourth-down attempt, MSU’s first drive into Georgia territory since the first half. Running back Fluff Bothwell mishandled a pass out of the backfield for an incompletion, but a Georgia defender was already in pursuit of the play short of the sticks.
“We were going to be aggressive in plus territory, and talked about it all week long,” Lebby said of the fourth down. “We were seven or less, so it was a go for us in that situation on fourth and five. Absolutely love what we had up, and we’ve got to make those plays.”
Georgia steamrolled MSU over the middle two quarters of the game, scoring 35 points and accumulating more than 360 yards of offense. Running back Nate Frazier, who scored a touchdown out of halftime, ran for 181 yards on just 12 carries while quarterback Gunner Stockton threw for 264 yards and three scores.
To make matters worse, MSU lost starting quarterback Blake Shapen on a blindside hit at the start of the third quarter. By the time they got the ball back, the Bulldogs were down by 31 points with true freshman Kamario Taylor headed into the game.
“Just play the next play,” Lebby said of his message to Taylor. “Create predictable outcomes, take care of the football, do exactly what you’ve been coached to do.”
A New Hope
The true freshman capped the opening drive with a rushing touchdown and did well to navigate the closing stages of the game to lead two more touchdown drives.
With the two touchdowns in three drives against Arkansas last week, Taylor’s experience running the offense has yielded positive results. He has had some off-target throws and negative running plays, but for the most part hasn’t had any difficulty in seizing his opportunity. His play was one of the few positives in a bad loss on Saturday, and something Lebby hopes to build on.
“He’s continuing to get better,” Lebby said. “I trust him to take care of the ball, he makes some really good plays with his feet when things weren’t perfect, and had the ability to do a couple of other things to make some layups… We’ll continue to coach him and he’ll continue to get better and better.”
MSU (5-5, 1-5 SEC) remains one win short of bowl eligibility after the disappointing loss. The frustration was evident among the players after the game, and senior wide receiver Brenen Thompson was emotional, reflecting on one of his final home games.
Thompson had four catches for 92 yards, including a 57-yard downfield shot from Taylor in the fourth quarter, setting up the freshman for his third rushing score of the game. The senior recognizes the talent in the freshman and has done his part to encourage and mentor Taylor with two games of meaningful action.
“He’s going to be such a great player,” Thompson said of Taylor, “but for me, I think he’s an even better human, a better person. Both of those guys, Blake and Kamario, and Luke, too. My words for him were, you’re going to play this game a long time, both of them are, so being able to not get too distracted with outside noise and what fans are saying, and what people are doing… This team is what’s important right now, so being able to go execute, and not get too high or too low.”
Letdown
One of the points of emphasis from the players and Lebby after the game was both thanks for the fanbase on an eventful weekend on campus. MSU hosted Education Day at The Hump and the inaugural Diamond Dawg Classic at The Dude on Friday, and featured dueling pregame shows from SEC Nation and Barstool Sports in the buildup to the Georgia game.
Though there was celebration in the festivities, there was also clear frustration in failing to deliver on the gridiron. This loss wasn’t like the games against Tennessee and Texas, where there was a chance to seal the deal late. This was a total defeat, and Lebby wore that after the game.
“I’m pissed off and disappointed because our people showed up,” he said. “Could not be more appreciative of what the stadium looked like today, what the town and community have done to create this energy and buzz for us. That’s one of the most frustrating pieces of it for me, for us to play the way we played today. We picked a bad time not to be at our best against a really good football team.”
MSU is back in action next week, traveling to face Missouri in the penultimate SEC game of the regular season. With only two chances left at bowl eligibility, Lebby expects a turnaround, both from the players and from himself.
“I don’t want to see anybody feeling sorry for themselves, I want to see guys with great toughness, great edge, being pissed off about responding the right way and being able to go get in a fight and win next Saturday,” Lebby said. “That’s the expectation. Every single person inside the locker room has that responsibility, and everything always starts and ends with me. I’ve got to find ways to make sure we’re ready to go play next Saturday.”
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