Mississippi State came out of Saturday’s loss to Oklahoma with a few real bright spots tucked inside the disappointment. A healthy Fluff Bothwell looked like a difference-maker again, Sanfrisco Magee delivered a late punch, and a trick-play touchdown from tight end Sam West gave the Bulldogs one of the day’s cleanest offensive moments.
But the other side of the ledger was just as clear. Billy Puckett’s mistakes landed in the worst possible places, the middle of the defense had trouble slowing Oklahoma’s ground game, and Kolin Wilson’s reduced role came with a quiet day attached.
Bothwell was the headline among the risers. He had been out since the Alabama game in early October, and he returned with the kind of workload that suggested Mississippi State wanted to lean on him right away. He finished with 17 carries for 111 yards, a 6.5-yard average, and Jeff Lebby said the staff had planned to keep him in a specific range.
“He was on a little bit of a pitch count for us. We wanted to be right around 15 to 18 carries. We actually, I think, were right in that sweet spot with where he ended up,” Lebby said in his postgame press conference.
With the quarterback situation still unsettled, Bothwell’s importance only grows. Lebby made that part plain after the game: “We’re going to need him in a great way,” Lebby said.
Magee also made his limited touches count. He finished with three catches for 65 yards, and every one of them mattered.
His biggest play was a 42-yard touchdown from Billy Puckett with 2:10 remaining, and he followed it by catching the two-point conversion that pulled Mississippi State within one score. The rally fell short, but Magee’s ability to win deep gave the offense something it has been missing.
West provided the afternoon’s most entertaining snap. On second-and-1 in the third quarter, he threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Camden Capehart, snapping an offensive scoring drought that had stretched across eight quarters for the Bulldogs.
Lebby said the staff kept pushing for aggressive play-calling after halftime because the offense needed to stay on the field and finish drives.
“It’s for us to be able to stay on the field and go score touchdowns. Us punting the ball there in the second half doesn’t help us go win the game,” Lebby said.
Puckett’s stat line was decent on paper - 17 completions on 24 attempts for 158 yards and a touchdown - but the two biggest moments went the wrong way. In the second quarter, on first-and-goal, he kept the ball and fumbled, and Mississippi State went into the locker room without scoring. Then in the fourth quarter he threw an interception in the end zone on a deep ball.
“Billy keeps the ball, and as he’s knifing, we’ve got to do a just better job of ball security. That was, again, really frustrating in that moment,” Lebby said.
Later, Lebby added, “The turnover as we got down there inside the two-yard line, obviously the pick there in the fourth quarter, those are two things that we want back,” Lebby said.
Defensively, Tyler Lockhart and Fatt Forrest each finished with 10 tackles, but the volume tells the story. Oklahoma entered the game averaging 92.5 rushing yards per game and ran for 184 against Mississippi State.
“I thought we were in position on a couple of them, and we don’t make the play. They do make the play,” Lebby said.
“We had a bust where we can’t have a bust situationally. That gives them a chunk.”
Wilson’s spot on the list goes the other direction because Bothwell returned and took back work in the backfield. Wilson had five carries for 16 yards, about 3 yards per attempt, on a day when Mississippi State averaged 5 on the ground.
Even with the workload drop, Lebby’s comments pointed to a bigger issue than just carries. The offense has to stop living behind the sticks.
“We can’t be in third and eight plus right now offensively and expect to go do what we need to do. I think we were one of 11 on third down,” Lebby said.
In Other News...
Mississippi State Suddenly Has A Quarterback Problem Before Texas
Mississippi States quarterback situation got a lot murkier Saturday when Kamario Taylor left early against Oklahoma with a right foot injury and never made it back onto the field. Jeff Lebby confirmed after the game that it was the same foot Taylor hurt earlier in the season, a setback that comes after the sophomore had already been limited in practice leading into the matchup.
For a Bulldogs team trying to get its offense sorted out before Texas, the timing is less than ideal. Lebby said the staff expects to have a better read on Taylors status soon, but he did not offer a return timeline, leaving Mississippi State to sort through another week of uncertainty at the games most important position. [Read more 🡒]
Sarkisian Just Sent Mississippi State A Warning About Texas Atmosphere
Texas home win over Ole Miss was the kind of game that reminded everyone why playing in Austin can be such a tough assignment. Steve Sarkisian came away talking less about the final score than the setting itself, praising the energy in the stadium after the Longhorns 34-27 victory and pointing out that the people who stayed inside got a memorable night.
For Mississippi State, the timing matters because the Bulldogs are next in line to see that atmosphere up close. Texas will also host Arkansas on the upcoming home slate, but the immediate concern for any visitor is the same one Sarkisian just highlighted: the crowd, the noise and the feeling that a big SEC game can turn the place into a different kind of test. [Read more 🡒]
Mississippi State Still Has One Dangerous Question At Quarterback
Mississippi States quarterback room is getting a little healthier at a time when every snap matters. Kamario Taylor has recovered from the injury that sidelined him for part of the Alabama game and kept him out entirely against LSU, giving the Bulldogs a much-needed option back as they turn their attention to Oklahoma.
Taylor and the coaching staff made the call after consulting with his doctors, and that matters as much as the timetable itself. The Bulldogs have been waiting to see how his status would settle, and his return to availability adds another layer to a position that has been one of the teams most closely watched spots heading into the weekend. [Read more 🡒]