The Bulldogs are talking up Jackson State.
JSU has a good bit more experience than MSU.
Getting to know Jackson State.
Mullen is confident about Tim Brewster on gameday.
The Tigers have some work to do to equal last season’s big offensive numbers.
Tobias Singleton will play on Saturday and could play a big role.
JSU coach Rick Comegy is pleased with his team.
Mullen’s press conference this week…
On Wednesday, the Mississippi State players voted their team captains for this year: Johnthan Banks, Cam Lawrence and Tobias Smith. I was a little surprised to see Tobias Smith in there, but that’s not to say it’s a bad choice or anything.
Tobias came to MSU in 2008 and redshirted. Unfortunately he had an injury in the 2009 training camp that set him back and he was only able to appear in a few games. He was able to come back in 2010 and played in 12 games and had a start. In 2011, Smith went down in the 3rd game of the season vs. LSU and was out for the season.
Coming into the 2012 season Tobias Smith is listed as the starter at Right Guard. Folks have gone from not counting on him to play to expecting him to be a force on the offensive line.
What can we count on from him though? A start and 20 plays, 30, 50, 70? Is he just the leader or will he be able to play most of the snaps?
Coming into fall camp Tobias had Ben Beckwith and Justin Malone baking him up on the depth chart. But going into the season Ben Beckwith has replaced Templeton Hardy as the backup to Gabe Jackson at Left Guard. Does that mean Smith has shown the ability to play a significant number of snaps or is it just because Hardy is a bust?
Justin Malone is a huge man: 6′-7″, 315. But he’s a freshman. Hopefully Tobias Smith will be able to stay healthy and play well or John Hevesy could be scrambling to find a suitable RG.
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This week Todd and Coach talk about the NCAA looking into Mississippi State, websites that cover State, and this weekend’s opening games.
All summer long I’ve spent time analyzing each SEC team, and especially MSU. I’ve read magazines, websites, message boards and I think I have a pretty good feel of how everyone is feeling about each game this year. So here’s what I’m going to do here: give a “confidence rating” for each game on State’s schedule. I’ll just use a number, 1-10. 1 being we have no chance, 10 meaning if we don’t win we should quit playing football. I’m not a betting man, but I do pay attention to the lines, and I’ll give my predicted point spread.
Sept. 1st – Jackson State: 10; This isn’t 2004. There’s no line for FCS games but if there were MSU would be at least -25.
Sept. 8th – Auburn: 5; If I could figure out the poll feature on this blog I bet 30% of y’all say we win, 30% say we lose, and 40% are just saying a prayer every night that we come away with a W. I think State will be at -2.
Sept. 15th – at Troy: 8; Yes, it’s Troy and they were pretty bad last year (3-9), but it is a road game and they should be near the top of the Sun Belt. I’d say MSU -17.
Sept. 22nd – South Alabama: 9; A new FBS team, and this will be their 3rd game ever vs. a FBS team, first outside N.C. State. MSU -21.
Oct. 6th – at Kentucky: 8; Dan Mullen is 3-0 against the Cats and 2-0 in Lexington. UK should be horrible this year. Mississippi State -16.
Oct. 13th – Tennessee: 6; This is a swing game for sure, but it’s one that most fans expect to win, especially with the loss of Da’Rick Rogers for UT. State goes in -4.
Oct. 20th – Middle Tennessee: 9; The Blue Raiders were 2-10 last year and probably won’t be much better this year. MSU -23.
Oct. 27th – at Alabama: 2; Outside of the 2% of State fans who have never said a negative word about the program in their life, this is a loss. State should be around +12.
Nov. 3rd – Texas A&M: 7; Now that A&M has had their game with LA Tech postponed they will be playing 8 consecutive weeks leading up to this game. It’s also in the middle of a brutal 5 out of 6 games are on the road. Of course, this is a sandwich game between Bama and LSU for State. I’ll say MSU -6.
Nov. 10th – at LSU: 1; There’s a 90% chance this game will be at night. That coupled with the fact that LSU will be REALLY good and MSU has won 1 out of the last 20 in this series, and the last win in Baton Rouge was JWS’ first year, 1991. MSU +13.
Nov. 17th – Arkansas: 4; This may seem a little high, but with the exit of Bobby Petrino and the way State played the Hogs the last time they were in Starkville, I think there is a lot of confidence for this game. Both teams are coming off big games as UPig plays South Carolina. Considering the home team usually gets 3 points in the figurin’ I’d say it’s a push.
Nov. 24th – at Mississippi: 7; Sure, we have been pounding the Bears, but the game is in Oxford and it will be their whole season. Their. whole. season. MSU -9.
Did you miss some of our articles this summer? Need a crash course to get ready for the season? Here’s 10 links to stuff we’ve written about the 2012 Bulldogs that will have you prepared come time to talk Dawg football at your tailgate…
Corey Broomfield moving to Safety
How high in the polls could State go if they mirrored UPig’s 2011 season?
Cam Lawrence having less than 100 tackles is a recipe for success
Marcus Green has a chance to make MSU history
Winning at Davis Wade is a must for a successful year
If you’d rather listen, Todd4State and Coach34 give an excellent preview of the team in this podcast.
Thanks to everyone who reads our posts and/or listens to the podcasts. We have fun working on them and we hope you enjoy. M&WN has grown a lot this year, and each month more and more people come to the site….so we appreciate that! We’re geared up for football season, and we’ll try our best to deliver as much quality reading/listening material as we can. Hail State!
Tyler Russell enters the year as the clear cut #1 quarterback. Dak Prescott hasn’t even seen the field, and there is no doubt this is Russell’s team. If he can make it through the year with out getting injured or benched, history shows us this will be a good year for State.
2011 (7-6) – Chris Relf had 11 starts and Russell two. But Relf only threw for 51% of the team’s passing yards…and Russell had to enter the game in several critical situations.
2010 (9-4) – Relf maintained the starting job the entire year. Russell came in sparingly to get experience, but was not counted on to win games.
2009 (5-7) – Tyson Lee started all the games…how I don’t know because he got knocked around a lot. He was only quasi-effective though and threw 14 INTs to his 4 TDs. In the biggest game, the Egg Bowl, Relf took over and led State to an upset win.
2008 (4-8) – Croom started the year vs. LA Tech by alternating Wesley Carroll and Tyson Lee each quarter. Dumb start, and eventually Carroll’s poor play gave way to Lee who started 8 games.
2007 (8-5) – Michael Henig came in as the starter but played horribly: 9 INTs to 1 TD. Josh Riddell played a little in the South Carolina game but got injured for the year. Luckily true Wes Carroll was there to catch the team, starting the final 9 games…but even he had some struggles down the stretch and Croom put Henig back in.
2006 (3-9) – Henig broke his collarbone in the first game of the year, which gave way to Tray Rutland who promptly tore his ACL or something. Omarr Conner had to switch back to QB from WR where he muddled through the next 5 games before Henig could play again.
2005 (3-8) – Omarr Conner started the first 8 games and played a mediocre quarterback. Michael Henig took over for the final three games and played a little less than mediocre except for the Egg Bowl where he was able to successfully hand the ball off to Jerious Norwood in a 35-14 Rebel beatdown.
2004 (3-8) – Conner started nine games that year but had a few injuries that cost him some games. Kyle York had to take over when he did.
2003 (2-10) – Kevin Fant holds some MSU records from this season because we were behind and he had to throw so much. I guess you could say there was QB stability in this year….but the team was horrible and doesn’t compare to 2012.
2002 (3-9) – The season got started off on the wrong foot when Fant got a discount on some tires and Kyle York had to start at Oregon as a freshman. From there Fant and York played. Fant more than York, it was bad.
2001 (3-8) – Wayne Madkin entered the season already MSU’s all-time leading passer. However, he couldn’t lead the team on to bigger things and Kevin Fant eventually took over and threw for 300 more yards than Madkin.
2000 (8-4) – Stability. Madkin was the man all year, with Fant the backup.
1999 (10-2) – This is probably the exception to the rule. Wayne Madkin was the starter all year long, and threw for 77% of the passing yards, but as we all know Matt Wyatt had to come in a few times and save the day – Auburn and Kentucky as you may remember. But Madkin was more talented while Wyatt was the experienced senior…a unique but successful combo.
1998 (8-5) – As a true freshman Wayne Madkin took over early and never looked back. Wyatt was the backup.
That’s about as far back as I feel like going. Getting tired at this point. But what you see here is the last 14 years of MSU football. Only 4 times did State have QB stability, and there were 3 winning seasons. 10 times they didn’t, and there were 7 losing seasons.
Chad Bumphis committing to Mississippi State in January of 2009 was huge. He was part of a flurry of commits Dan Mullen got in his first month on the job. A 4-star wide receiver out of Tupelo drawing comparisons to Percy Harvin.
Eight months later he was on the field as a true freshman. In his first game against Jackson State he caught two balls, both went for touchdowns as he displayed his dynamic athletic ability. He made plays all year long and led MSU in receiving with 375 yards.
Bumphis improved even more his sophomore season and once again led the team with 634 yards receiving.
Coming into his junior season many State fans expected a break-out, All-SEC type of season from #1. But Bumphis did not deliver. Even though he was 2nd on the team with 339 yards, he was typically no where to be found in SEC games. Out of his 339 yards, 216 came vs. the four non-conference opponents. All three of his receiving touchdowns were against Memphis, UAB, and UT-Martin. His best SEC game of the year was against Auburn when he had two catches for 31 yards.
This electrifying punt return for a TD was against Louisiana Tech.
In the Music City Bowl Bump had two rushes for -4 yards and one catch for -3. Then he got arrested on New Year’s Eve. All of the sudden Chad Bumphis is a forgotten man in Starkville. Many MSU fans are already looking to the next generation – Joe Morrow and Jameon Lewis to take over. But what about Chad?
You can’t look at the above highlights and say he doesn’t have SEC-quality talent. He’s 5′-11″, 200 pounds but he has a dynamic skill set, and is powerful for his size.
Bumphis was subjected to a lot of double teams in 2011. He was also rumored to have some ankle problems. What’s more, his quarterback was Chris Relf. No offense to Relf, but he was wasn’t going to throw a tight spiral into anything that looked like coverage.
Bump has been quiet. That’s a good thing. We’ve been hearing about Chris Smith, Joe Morrow, Jameon Lewis, Arceto Clark, etc. Chad Bumphis was the man for three years, but now everyone is putting him in the back seat. He’s still listed as a starter, and he still has the talent. This is his senior year – it’s time to get it done. It’s time for Chad Bumphis to lead the receiving corp to the next level.
I enjoy a good mixed tape. Yep, I still make tapes. There’s just something about the crackle in that cassette that makes me smile. They never skip either, just get ate up.
“Bad to the Bone” by George Thurgood
“Every Dog Has its Day” by Toby Keith
“Who let the Dogs Out?” by Baha Men
“Givin’ the Dog a Bone” by AC/DC
“Diggin’ Up Bones” by Randy Travis
“Rough Housin’” by .38 Special
“Them Bones” by Alice in Chains
“Daylight the Dog” by O.A.R.
“Like my Dog” by Billy Currington
“Dogs” by Pink Floyd
“Dog Days” by Atlanta Rhythm Section
“Hound Dog” by Elvis Presley
“Ol’ Red” by Blake Shelton
State doesn’t have much depth at the most important position, quarterback, but there is some in a lot of other areas.
WR – The 2-deep was released on Friday: Chris Smith, Chad Bumphis and Arceto Clark are on the 1st line with Brandon Heavens, Jameon Lewis and Ricco Sanders on the 2nd. The surprise is no Joe Morrow, but surely he will see the field often. Robert Johnson is also around. Plenty of experience here. There is also a lot of athleticism…but as always with this group of receivers – they have to get open and make plays.
RB – LaDarius Perkins has solidified himself as the starting tailback. Nick Griffin is listed as #2, and a lot of folks are really excited about what he can bring….although he is coming back from an injury the year before last and will need to get his mental edge back. Josh Robinson is pushing him for PT, and Derrick Milton should see the field as well. There is little to no experience behind Perkins – but there is talent.
LB – This isn’t usually considered a skill position, but I don’t want to leave them out. This unit looks pretty solid with Cam Lawrence as the anchor. Redshirt freshman Benardrick McKinney has won the MLB spot over Felando Bohanna and Deontae Skinner looks to have a big year on the outside. Joining Bohanna on the 2nd line is Matthew Wells and Chris Hughes. Wells had a fair amount of playing time last year as a freshman. Hughes was highly-touted coming out of high school and should be ready to play a significant role now that he’s got his legal troubles behind him. True frosh Richie Brown should play this year.
DB – Johnthan Banks is the heart of this unit. Darius Slay will sent up tent at the other corner spot in his senior year. Corey Broomfield will play strong safety, although him and Jay Hughes are listed as equals at that position. Nickoe Whitley will round things out starting at free safety. So that means seniors at 3 out of 4 in the secondary. Redshirt freshman Tavese Calhoun will back up Banks, and by all accounts he has had a great training camp. Will Redmond has the talent to play, but the pending NCAA investigation may prohibit that. Dee Arrington should probably see a lot of time on the field at safety.
Don’t take any of this as fact, just information. I don’t claim to be a reporter, journalist or have inside “sources”. But I’m sure we’ll get 1,000 extra people coming to the site today looking for NCAA news, so I’m going to throw out some bullet points on what I’ve heard…
Thoughts: This may be a huge deal, or it may amount to nothing. Chances are it’s somewhere in between. On one hand, if Redmond received a car and Mirando facilitated the transaction then we could be in big trouble. On the other hand, if there was just a rogue booster who the NCAA is investigating for possibly giving improper benefits but none were given – this is nothing. Best case scenario for MSU: the booster contacted Mirando and he did nothing about it, and he was fired for not following proper protocol by reporting it to his superiors….and any improper benefits given to Redmond were minimal.
One thing I know is that the NCAA is a lot kinder when you cooperation fully. It’s when you lie or try to cover things up that they come down with the hammer. Hopefully MSU has indeed been forthcoming will all information and this won’t end too bad.
Brandon Marcello – Clarion Ledger Brad Locke – Daily Journal Chris Low – ESPN SEC BloggerTheme by ThemeZee.com