ATHENS, Ga. — Mississippi State fought valiantly in the second half, turning a 24-point deficit into just a 10-point hole. But the MSU defense could not generate enough stops, and the upset-minded visitors lost 41-31 to No. 5 Georgia at Sanford Stadium, falling to 1-5 overall and 0-3 in Southeastern Conference play.
Takeaways
1. Michael Van Buren grew up a lot during this game. MSU’s offense gained just 12 yards on its first 12 plays, failing to pick up a first down on its first four drives. Van Buren started the fifth possession with a bomb downfield to Mario Craver that picked up 17 yards, leading to his first collegiate touchdown pass to Kelly Akharaiyi that made it a three-point game.
In the second half, Van Buren was far more confident, getting tight end Seydou Traore involved and connecting with his best security blanket, Kevin Coleman. MSU’s running game was essentially nonexistent early, but junior college transfer Johnnie Daniels found the end zone in the third quarter, and Van Buren threw his second touchdown pass of the game to running back Davon Booth on fourth down later in the period.
The freshman was just 5-for-15 over the first two quarters but came out of the locker room a different quarterback, capping his outing with a 35-yard dart to Akharaiyi for his third touchdown pass. There were plenty of positive signs for MSU as Van Buren prepares to make his first start at home next week against Texas A&M. The offensive line also did not allow a sack, a big step forward from the Texas game two weeks ago when Van Buren was sacked six times.
2. There just aren’t enough playmakers anywhere on this defense. Apologies to cornerbacks Brice Pollock and DeAgo Brumfield, who each intercepted a pass Saturday — with Brumfield doing so in his MSU debut after transferring from Memphis and missing the first five games of the season. But the defensive line allowed Beck as much time as he needed to throw, and Beck set a career high with 459 passing yards. MSU did not sack Beck once even as Beck threw the ball 48 times. Georgia posted more than 600 yards of total offense, icing the game on a 16-play, 81-yard drive in the fourth quarter that ate up nearly seven and a half minutes off the clock.
3. The rest of the season will at least be worth watching. MSU still has several tough tests on its remaining schedule, but its two most difficult games are now in the rearview mirror. Texas A&M is coming off a bye week following a pasting of Missouri, and Arkansas has a big upset win over Tennessee, but nobody is unbeatable. MSU’s offense and its young quarterback are trending in a positive direction.
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