Jordan Rodgers’ words proved prophetic.
The color commentator on ESPN’s broadcast of Mississippi State’s game Saturday at Auburn uttered a prescient few sentences two plays into what ended up being a massive Bulldogs drive in the second quarter. MSU trailed Auburn by 25 points, but with the visitors set to start the second half with the football, Rodgers knew a touchdown could change things.
“Something like that would do so much for morale in the locker room,” he said. “You look up at the scoreboard, 28-3, that’s tough to get the juice to come out in the second half. You get some momentum here, get some positivity, you could build on it.”
It turned out to be exactly what happened.
Mississippi State went 75 yards in 10 plays to make it a 28-10 game with 1:55 to go in the second quarter, setting the stage for the biggest comeback in school history. The Bulldogs beat the No. 17-ranked Tigers 43-34, all thanks to that key possession.
“The biggest drive of the game for us was the drive before halftime,” quarterback Will Rogers said.
Here’s how MSU cashed in en route to a massive road win.
Play No. 1: First-and-10 at the Mississippi State 25-yard line. Rogers fakes a handoff to Dillon Johnson, pump-fakes a throw to Jaden Walley in the right flat and fires for Christian Ford over the middle. Ford makes the catch right at the first-down marker with some room to run, and he is tackled at the 42.
Play No. 2: First-and-5 at the MSU 47. After Auburn nose tackle Marcus Harris leaps across the line early, drawing an offsides penalty, Rogers hands off to Johnson and fakes a throw despite an empty hand. Johnson runs to the right, shooting past Tigers linebacker Zakoby McClain, who whiffs on a tackle attempt. Chandler Wooten brings Johnson down after an 8-yard gain and a first down.
Play No. 3: First-and-10 at the Auburn 45. Out of an empty backfield, Rogers throws a screen pass to his left to Malik Heath. Left guard Kameron Jones can’t block safety Ladarius Tennison, and Tennison brings down Heath at the line of scrimmage. It’s the only play on the drive that did not result in a positive gain.
Play No. 4: Second-and-10 at the Auburn 45. Rogers sees nothing in the pocket and decides to scramble. He bumps into right tackle Scott Lashley, runs forward, cuts back left and runs out of bounds at the 41.
Play No. 5: Third-and-6 at the Auburn 41. Rogers looks right against man coverage from the Tigers but finds no one open. He turns to his left, where Johnson sits open behind the line of scrimmage with plenty of space. Johnson catches a short toss and races past the first-down marker; as he does so, Heath shoves Auburn cornerback Roger McCreary to the turf at the 33. McClain brings down Johnson at the 29, but Heath is called for an illegal block in the back that negates the first down.
Play No. 6: Third-and-8 at the Auburn 43. With edge rushers Derick Hall and T.D. Moultry gaining ground, Rogers takes off toward the hash marks on the right side of the field. Colby Wooden brings him down at the 39.
Play No. 7: Fourth-and-4 at the Auburn 39. Mike Leach said last week he “probably ought to get back to my old ways” of going for it on fourth down. That shows as Leach keeps the offense on the field. “We were kind of the right distance away,” Leach said Monday. “You’re too far away to kick the field goal, too close that you don’t get much out of punting it, really — unless you stick the ball perfect. I just figured it was more value if we go for it.” Wide receiver Austin Williams goes in motion from left to right before the snap, and Rogers fires through a tight window to connect with Williams at the 27. The 12-yard gain keeps the Bulldogs’ drive going.
Play No. 8: First-and-10 at the Auburn 27. With a completely clean pocket and tons of time, Rogers throws a short pass to wideout Makai Polk. Polk is taken down at the 20, setting up a short second-down play. Auburn then calls its second timeout with 2:05 left in the half.
Play No. 9: Second-and-3 at the Auburn 20. Rogers fakes a short pass and fires to the corner for a wide-open Jamire Calvin. The Washington State graduate transfer turns to make the catch at the 6-yard line and is spun out of bounds at the 4 by safety Zion Puckett.
Play No. 10: First-and-goal at the Auburn 4. Again with strong protection, Rogers sees Polk with a step on cornerback Jaylin Simpson and hurls the ball his way. Polk makes the catch between the goalposts in the back of the end zone for a 4-yard touchdown. Mississippi State cuts the lead to 28-10 with 1:55 to go, forces a missed 55-yard field goal from Auburn and heads into halftime with the momentum it needed.
“We felt like they had done some things just to stop us in the first half, but I felt like a really key drive for us was the last drive of the second quarter,” Rogers told ESPN postgame.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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