STARKVILLE – There will be one unanimous pick for the moment, which everyone will remember from Mississippi State vs. Arizona State in 2025.
Brenen Thompson’s 58-yard touchdown reception from Blake Shapen is a play that will forever etch both players into the annals of Mississippi State football history, and the history of Davis Wade Stadium. That’s the way of history in sports when historic things happen, but the 59 minutes and 30 seconds of football that built up to that moment all had a hand in forging that history as well.
It was a tale of two halves sort of game for the Bulldogs, looking like the dominant team in the first half before capitulating to the Sun Devils’ run game in the second. Head coach Jeff Lebby recognized that even while recounting the last-minute touchdown, as well as the focus that it took to get the job done in the moment after the second half of miscues. It was a roller coaster for him and his team, but one that ultimately handed them the first signature win of this new era of MSU football.
17-0, Whitson sack, BT score
Early in the second quarter, the Bulldogs were leading 10-0. It was a strong start, but there was still a lot of room to grow into the game.
The Bulldogs found a new surge of energy from a huge sack by Will Whitson, pushing the Sun Devils back 14 yards. A penalty pushed them back inside the five to punt the ball away, only clearing it to the 47-yard line.
The Bulldogs took the field and missed on first down, but opted to go long on second down. Shapen heaved one toward the pylon, trusting that Thompson would both beat his man and track the ball down at the goal line. He was correct in his assumption. Thompson burned his marker and created separation before getting his head up, right as the ball was on its way down. He adjusted slightly to correct his course, but it was dropped with great precision, the kind that suggests several reps practicing that exact route.
At 17-0 the Bulldogs looked in control. The game had other plans in store before the night was over, but MSU’s position was significant. To that point they were far the better team, executing on offense and opening up the playbook for Lebby to fire downfield. It was also, as everyone knows now, a sign of more to come.
Shank punt
The turnaround for Arizona State started at the very end of the first half. The Bulldog defense forced two turnovers via an interception and a stop on fourth down following the Thompson touchdown, but the offense couldn’t capitalize. Two more drives went nowhere, and then a punt from midfield shanked off the side of Nathan Tiyce’s foot. Instead of being backed up against their own end zone, the Sun Devils had one last chance in the half, starting at the 34.
In 32 seconds, the Sun Devils were able to pull within field goal range and get on the board before halftime. The visitors would receive the ball out of halftime as well, and march 75 yards on the ground to score their first touchdown of the game.
Between the punting mishap and the first drive of the second half, the MSU offense had seen its lead cut by 10 points without touching the ball.
The dynamic had changed, and the playcalling reflected it. The Bulldogs were suddenly under pressure again, and it caused some questionable decisions.
4th down at midfield
Late in the third quarter, the Bulldogs looked to be driving again. A pair of first down plays had the Bulldogs at midfield, and a Fluff Bothwell run had them in the hurry up for a third and one on the edge of ASU territory. A false start negated the play, and a third-and-six incompletion suddenly killed the momentum.
It seemed a pretty obvious punting situation, but Lebby kept his offense on the field. Another incomplete pass then handed the ball back to ASU at the MSU 49.
There wasn’t much wrong with the play call, but the execution was lacking. Shapen threw over the middle just beyond the sticks, but to a receiver who had a defender draped all over him. Based on the quick nature of the play, there wasn’t another read made in Shapen’s progressions, and the turnover on downs marked the fourth straight drive to stall out since the Bulldogs had last scored in the first half.
The Sun Devils took full advantage, burning five minutes on a touchdown drive to tie the game. A quick stop got them the ball back again early in the fourth quarter with a chance at a go-ahead score.
Goal line stand
The drive that seemed to be the game-winning drive was Arizona State’s fourth-quarter march. The Sun Devils embarked on a 17-play, 95-yard drive beginning at their own 4-yard line. They ran the ball 15 times and forced MSU to burn their timeouts before taking a 20-17 lead with an 18-yard field goal by Jesus Gomez. It was methodical and timely for the Sun Devils, a measure of their experience as a team as well as the control they had over MSU’s defense on the ground in the second half.
There was just one problem: they couldn’t get into the end zone.
ASU running back Kanye Udoh broke through for a 26-yard run to the goal line late in the game, taken down by MSU corner DeAgo Brumfield with a desperate chasedown tackle from behind to prevent the score. From there, the Bulldogs stopped ASU on three more attempts to push through the heart of the defense. The final stop came on a tackle by Nic Mitchell and Malick Sylla at the 1-yard line.
“Defensively, find a way to get the guy on the ground and make the offense snap the ball again,” Lebby said of the stand. “There’s no better tell than what just happened, and we’re able to line up and have incredible physicality for those next three plays to keep them out of the end zone, and give us an opportunity to go win the game. I told the team I’m proud of them for a lot of things, but the goal line stand, unquestionably, being able to go do that in that situation after all that had happened in the second half, it was special.”
The stop gave the Bulldogs a chance. It may have been a slim chance, but it was all they needed in the end to make magic happen.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 30 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 30 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
