MSU faces K-State on road as heavy favorite
STARKVILLE — Joe Moorhead faced multiple questions at SEC Media Days about his team’s Week 2 matchup against Kansas State. Many reporters believed an 11 a.m. road game in Manhattan, Kansas, presented the Bulldogs’ head coach with a pressing challenge.
Fast forward a month and a half, and most of them have probably reconsidered their earlier assumptions.
No. 18 Mississippi State looked like a formidable force in a 63-6 trouncing of Stephen F. Austin. Kansas State looked mediocre in a 27-24 escape against South Dakota.
The Bulldogs opened as seven-point favorites, and that line quickly swelled to double-digits. Senior quarterback Nick Fitzgerald’s season debut in an offense that can score points in a hurry has a lot to do with that. Still, nobody on MSU’s coaching staff is overlooking the Wildcats.
“They are tough, smart, disciplined, physical, and (they) run to the football,” Moorhead said. “They won't beat themselves.”
K-State head coach Bill Snyder’s teams rarely do that. The Wildcats have had a negative turnover margin in just one season in the last nine years. Saturday against South Dakota wasn’t a good start to stay on the better end of that trend as K-State lost the turnover battle by four.
Mississippi State waited until late in the fourth quarter to force its only turnover against Stephen F. Austin. Defensive coordinator Bob Shoop said he wants takeaways to come quicker and more often, and he thinks that can happen this week.
“We have to stop the run on first and second down,” Shoop said. “And if we get to third down, if we can get them to third and six or seven or more, then we can do some of the things we really enjoy doing.”
Third and long situations will allow Shoop’s secondary to play zone and will give him more opportunities to send rushers to the Wildcat quarterbacks. Shoop said the combination of blitzing and zone coverage might yield his talented secondary looks at interceptions.
Interceptions will be in the offing only if Mississippi State’s defensive line doesn’t do the damage first. State had four sacks last week, and even with the buzz surrounding Kansas State’s offensive line, that unit surrendered three sacks to South Dakota last week. With senior defensive tackle Cory Thomas rejoining his stacked position group, the Bulldogs might have another field day.
Fitzgerald, meanwhile, will look to avoid sacks and interceptions. Making his first start in over nine months, he might be too wound up early on. He definitely was earlier this week when quarterbacks coach Andrew Breiner had to tell him to calm down a bit in team meetings.
Nonetheless, Fitzgerald is excited. And when the senior signal caller has loads of energy, it’s usually contagious. During camp, Breiner saw Fitzgerald’s attitude positively affect the entire offense. The unit struggled to match up with State’s defense that day, and Fitzgerald’s teammates hung their heads.
No. 7 channeled an intensity that Breiner hadn't yet seen, and he told his guys to get fired up. They responded, Breiner said, by having one of the most productive practices of the summer. If things go awry in a hostile environment, Fitzgerald should provide a similar spark. It might be just what MSU needs.
“I think as Nick goes, we go, from a mentality standpoint,” Breiner said. “He has that ability to affect the entire unit and affect the entire team.”