West matchup should offer clarity
AUBURN, Ala. — Mississippi State’s football team looked like it could emerge as No. 1 Alabama’s biggest challenger in the SEC West.
That was two weeks ago, though, and since then the Bulldogs have flopped — badly.
No. 13 Auburn also has hopes for Southeastern Conference contention out of the West, and it finally looked the part last week. The two potential division contenders meet tonight with one of them strengthening its candidacy and the other left trying to salvage those hopes.
“This is a huge game,” Auburn tailback Kerryon Johnson said.
Both teams still have plenty to prove. No. 24 Mississippi State (3-1, 1-1) dominated No. 25 LSU two weeks ago only to get clobbered during this past Saturday’s trip to No. 7 Georgia. Auburn (3-1, 1-0) is fresh off a 51-14 league win at Missouri after looking shaky on offense the previous two weeks due to a lack of production against Clemson and turnovers against Mercer.
Mississippi State has been on a roller-coaster ride, especially in terms of national perception, but this game seems likely to provide more clarity — one way or the other.
“You’re a young football team with people patting them on the back — the family members, the uncles, the cousins, the friends and the people around campus telling them how great they are,” Bulldogs coach Dan Mullen said. “Now this week, everyone’s telling them how bad they are.”
The question now is what will they be saying next week?
Both offenses are likely to face strong challenges. The Tigers rank fourth nationally in total defense and seventh in scoring defense. The Bulldogs aren’t terribly far behind, with a 10th-ranked defense that’s also fifth against the pass and 16th in points allowed per game.
Auburn will have to defend both the running and passing of Mississippi State quarterback Nick Fitzgerald, who ranks fourth in the SEC in total offense. Fitzgerald was held to 83 passing yards and threw two interceptions against Georgia, and it was also his first game this season without a rushing touchdown. He has accounted for 12 touchdowns (seven passing, five rushing) this year.
“He is a true dual-threat guy,” Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said. “He’s like a running back in the backfield, which presents a lot of problems with the plus-one run game for defenses. He’s got where he throws the ball extremely accurate when he has time. That’s going to be a big challenge for our defense.”
For the first time this season, Auburn will likely have Johnson and fellow tailback Kamryn Pettway available for the same game. Pettway has missed one game with an injury and another because of a suspension, and Johnson was out the other two games with a right hamstring injury.
The depth could offer a huge boost to a running game that hasn’t been as consistently formidable as in recent seasons. Johnson did run for five touchdowns against Missouri despite gaining just 48 yards. In last season’s 38-14 win against Mississippi State, Pettway ran for 169 yards and three touchdowns.