STARKVILLE — An already-potent Mississippi State offense will get a key piece back on Saturday against Arizona.

Head coach Zach Arnett announced at Monday’s press conference that sophomore receiver Zavion Thomas is expected to make his return from an ankle injury sustained in fall camp. Arnett said Thomas could have played in the season opener against Southeastern Louisiana, but the Bulldogs (1-0) chose to be cautious with the former freshman All-American punt returner.

“If something unfortunate happened in the game, then you lose him for one or two games afterward,” Arnett said. “We wanted to see if we could weather the storm without him. We expect him to be back.”

Thomas should make an immediate impact both in the passing game and on special teams. The Woodmere, La., product caught just two passes for four yards a season ago, but was second in the Southeastern Conference in yards per punt return, including a 63-yard touchdown against top-ranked Georgia.

He was primed for a bigger role this fall and impressed in the spring, hauling in a long, one-handed touchdown pass from starting quarterback Will Rogers in the spring game. Thomas was listed as a starting receiver on MSU’s depth chart both last week and Monday. His presence — and opposing defenses having to account for him — could further open things up for the Bulldogs’ other receiving options.

Freshman Creed Whittemore broke out in his first collegiate game with four catches for 59 yards and a touchdown and also rushed for a 53-yard score. Senior Lideatrick “Tulu” Griffin caught four passes for 33 yards against the Lions, and last year teamed with Thomas to give MSU one of the best return duos in all of college football.

Scouting Arizona

The Bulldogs gradually pulled away from the Wildcats last September, defeating them 39-17 in Tucson in the first-ever meeting between the programs.

Arizona has not reached a bowl game since 2017 but took a step forward last year coming off a 1-11 season in 2021, finishing 5-7 and snapping a five-game losing streak to rival Arizona State in the Territorial Cup game. The Wildcats also upset then-No. 9 UCLA on the road late in the season.

Dual-threat quarterback Jayden de Laura could pose a bevy of problems for MSU’s defense. The junior out of Hawaii was third in the Pac-12 last season in passing yards per game and threw for 25 touchdowns against 13 interceptions, adding four scores on the ground. In Arizona’s season-opening 38-3 win over Northern Arizona, de Laura completed 18 of 24 passes for 285 yards with three touchdowns and one pick to go along with 47 rushing yards and another touchdown.

“They have a phenomenal scheme offensively. (de Laura) is very mobile and agile,” Arnett said. “The sacks he gets out of when you feel like you have him bottled up, he flushes and finds a way out of there. He has one of the quickest releases I’ve seen in football right now.”

The Wildcats struggled on defense in 2022, allowing at least 30 points in eight of their 12 games. Rogers was 39-for-48 passing against them in last season’s meeting for 313 yards with four touchdowns and an interception, completing passes to 10 different receivers.

Although Arizona runs a similar scheme this year under defensive coordinator Johnny Nansen, Rogers said this matchup will be different, with both starting cornerbacks new to the top of the depth chart.

“The biggest thing that’s really stood out is how mobile they are within their front seven,” Rogers said. “They move around really well, they have a really high motor defensively. We’re going to have our hands full come Saturday and we need a great week of practice.”

Tight end room supporting Spivey

TCU graduate transfer Geor’quarius Spivey was ruled ineligible to play by the NCAA on Thursday — his decision to transfer was delayed because the Horned Frogs played in the national championship game last year, he wrote in a statement.

Arnett, after Saturday’s game, called the NCAA’s decision “a gigantic blow to our football team and our offense” and said he is unsure whether the ruling is final. Ryland Goede, a grad transfer from two-time defending national champion Georgia, slid into the starting tight end spot in Spivey’s absence. Spivey was wearing his jersey on the sideline for Saturday’s game.

“He’s been a great teammate throughout the whole process,” Goede said. “We love Spivey; he’s an unbelievable human and a great player. We’re supporting him throughout this and thankful he’s still part of the team.”

Goede did not register a catch against SELA but helped pave the way for a 298-yard performance from the run game, which would have been 300 if not for a pair of game-ending kneel downs. The Bulldogs last rushed for 300-plus yards in two games in November 2019, the year prior to Mike Leach’s arrival.

“We’re starting to build an identity in that tight end room,” Goede said. “We saw that 300 (rush yards) get up on the scoreboard and we were really excited. That’s something we wanted to do is establish the line of scrimmage, and for the tight end position, that’s big for us. We were really pumped to see that. It’s as good as a touchdown or a 300-yard passing game.”