STARKVILLE — Joe Moorhead’s second term at Mississippi State has marked a year of tempered expectations.
Gone are the days of speaking of ring sizes and creating a championship tradition. At present, Moorhead’s focus is on the weekly one-game seasons he so often harps on.
Entering Week 4, or Season 4 depending on whom you ask, the Bulldogs are in a precarious situation.
After dispatching of Louisiana and Southern Mississippi with relative ease, this past Saturday’s home loss to Kansas State afforded plenty more questions than answers.
On a week that the middling MSU defensive front showed promise, it was the Bulldog secondary that blew coverage after coverage against a team known far more for its rushing attack than aerial assault.
Offensively, junior running back Kylin Hill managed his third straight 100-yard game of the season, but it took 24 carries to get there.
And then there are the injuries. Starting cornerback Cam Dantzler was hurt in warmups and didn’t even suit up against the Wildcats, while starting quarterback Tommy Stevens left a second straight game with a lingering shoulder issue.
In the running backs room, senior Nick Gibson missed practice last week and didn’t play Saturday. Moorhead also announced senior tailback Alec Murphy will miss the rest of the season.
Even backup quarterback Keytaon Thompson has yet to see the field since he returned from the transfer portal as he battles an upper-body issue of his own.
All that said, it’s been a rough few days in Starkville — days that could get all the more bleak should the Bulldogs not pull out a victory over Kentucky this weekend.
Calling the fourth game of the season a must-win is admittedly a bit harsh. Yet with the way MSU’s schedule lines up coupled with the preseason aspirations this team had, it’s a contest that has quickly become one the Bulldogs can ill afford to lose.
Forecasting past this week’s game, MSU will head to Auburn before a bye week and a trip to Tennessee. Assuming those results hold to preseason rankings, MSU likely enters the second half of the season 3-4 — with a win over the Volunteers and losses to the Wildcats and Tigers.
Following a trip to Rocky Top, MSU’s next four opponents include LSU, at Texas A&M, at Arkansas and home against Alabama. While a win in College Station is conceivable, the Bulldogs presumably finish that stretch 1-3 — with a lone victory coming over the lowly Razorbacks — giving them an overall record of 4-6.
MSU would then face Abilene Christian and Ole Miss in games they’ll undoubtedly be heavy favorites in — though nothing is ever guaranteed in the Egg Bowl.
At 6-6, MSU would likely find itself in a tropical postseason destination like the Jared Birmingham Bowl or Walk-On’s Independence Bowl against a mediocre AAC or ACC team, respectively.
Yet with a win over Kentucky this weekend, MSU could head into its main conference slate at 4-2 with its lone losses potentially coming to Kansas State and Auburn.
Assuming the rest of those results hold true to form — granted Texas A&M will be worn come that Oct. 26 meeting in the Longhorn State — MSU could be looking at the 7-5 or 8-4 season that seemed logical at this year’s onset.
As mentioned, calling a Week 4 matchup a must-win is a touch excessive — especially with all the injury issues MSU has faced in the early going.
But following a game in which the Bulldogs boasted a touchdown lead in the fourth quarter and couldn’t convert, combined with a Wildcats team that was a missed field goal away from upsetting No. 9 Florida when the Gators came to town, Moorhead expects two motivated squads to meet on the turf at Davis Wade Stadium on Saturday.
“We’re not happy about it,” he said of last week’s loss. “In terms of motivation, I don’t think you’ll see desperation. I think you’ll see two teams who played close games that are a little upset and a little angry about the outcome that are going to come loaded for bear and get this thing back on track.”
Ben Portnoy reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @bportnoy15.
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