Mississippi State, Arkansas face off

K.J. Costello’s record-setting debut with No. 16 Mississippi State will be a tough act to follow. Arkansas counterpart Feleipe Franks is looking for an improved performance and a win.

The quarterback transfers’ prospects Saturday night may ride on their teams’ ability to complement them in other phases during when they meet in Starkville, Mississippi.

The Bulldogs (1-0, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) look to build on their remarkable start under first-year coach Mike Leach and his Air Raid offense. The pass-oriented scheme thrived early and often as Costello passed for 623 yards to upset then-No. 6 and defending national champion LSU 44-34 on the road last weekend.

“The biggest thing is just do the same things over and over, but do them better,” Leach said this week. “I feel like we have a long way to go.”

Costello threw five touchdown passes but also two interceptions, providing motivation to progress and keep the high-octane system humming.

“If we take our foot off the gas, we lose our edge there,” said Costello, who set a SEC single-game yardage record along with school marks with 36 completions and 60 attempts.

Meanwhile, the rebuilding Razorbacks (0-1, 0-1) aim to gain an edge toward becoming competitive under first-year coach Sam Pittman.

Arkansas led No. 4 Georgia for little more than a half last weekend before the Bulldogs found their groove after a QB change and rolled to win 37-10. Franks, a three-year starter at Florida who transferred after last season, completed 19 of 36 passes for 200 yards and a TD but also threw two interceptions.