Mississippi State Football: 3 Reasons Why the Bulldogs Will Defeat Auburn

Mississippi State Football: 3 Reasons Why the Bulldogs Will Defeat Auburn

The Mississippi State Football team will host the Auburn Tigers this weekend in a game that was postponed earlier due to Covid-19. It feels funny to have a football game that is not a Bowl game after the Egg Bowl. These are times we are living in as our society learns to live within a pandemic.

I feel confident that Mississippi State will play well against Auburn. On paper, talent-wise, and record-wise, Auburn seems like the better team, and the oddsmakers also have Auburn as a (-7.5) favorite. Over the years, The Bulldogs and Tigers have had some memorable games.

I do not doubt that this game will provide another addition to the SEC West rivalry between Auburn and Mississippi State. Here are three reasons why Mississippi State will defeat Auburn on Saturday.

The Bulldog Defense Will Keep Bo Nix and the Auburn Rushing Attack in Check

Auburn has an offense with some impact players, but I feel the Bulldog defense will pressure Nix into bad throws and keep Bigsby under 100 yards rushing.  The Bulldogs have given up thirty-one points in each of the last two games. To the average eye, that may look terrible but consider what this team has been through so far this season.

The Bulldogs have plenty of talent leading charge, but the transfer portal, opt-outs, and Covid-19 have all impacted the Bulldogs’ defensive depth. A lot of young Bulldogs have gained experience and playing time that should help them now and in the future. The reality now is the young Bulldog defenders are giving their best effort and will just get beaten by better offensive players.

Bo Nix is a quarterback that beat you with his arm and his feet. He is also prone to mistakes, which I feel the Bulldogs will definitely take advantage of. He has weapons to throw to in Seth Williams and Anthony Schwartz.

The main cog that makes this offense go is Tank Bigsby. The true freshman has run for 642 yards and five touchdowns. If the Bulldogs can bottle up Bigby and force Auburn to rely on Nix’s arm, the chances of winning grow, in my opinion.

Will Rogers Continues His Streak of 200 Plus Yard Passing Games

It has been a sight to see watching Will Rogers grow up in front of my eyes. I still wonder what our season would have been like if he had permanently replaced Costello against Arkansas. I truly feel like we would have more than two wins.

In his last three games, Rogers has thrown for 1002 yards and 5 touchdowns for an average of 334 yards a game and has completed 70% of his passes on the season. He has thrown for over 200 yards in three straight games. As of today, Auburn is 4th in SEC in passing yards allowed with 239.7 per game.

That ranking will take a huge hit as I think Rogers will throw for over 400 yards for the second straight game. Jaden Walley, Malik Heath, Osirus Mitchell are all receivers at Rogers’s disposal.

Add Geor’Quarious Spivey to that list as he is a matchup nightmare for anyone to cover. Spivey’s breakout game against Ole Miss should lead to more opportunities against Auburn.

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The Bulldogs are Rested and Hopefully Healthy for the Matchup

When the Bulldogs take the field Saturday, it will have been 14 whole days since the Egg Bowl loss to Ole Miss. I know, it still feels weird to say that, but I have confidence the Egg will return to its maroon home next year.

Hopefully, the time off has allowed the Bulldogs to recover from injury or any lingering Covid-19 symptoms. It has been well reported that Mississippi State has been playing with or below the minimum amount of scholarship players allowed.

If Mississippi State comes into this game healthy, that helps the Bulldogs’ chances of beating Auburn. I predict Mississippi State will win this game by a field goal.

Take a gander at highlights from the last time Auburn visited Davis Wade Stadium. On that night, our Bulldogs upset the #8 Auburn Tigers.