Keys to victory for Mississippi State football vs Toledo

Mississippi State struggled in all three phases of the game in the first half versus Arizona State, but they were able to make some corrections at half which allowed them to get back in the game. Ultimately, the Bulldogs fell short and lost out in the desert. In tonight's game, Mississippi State should build on what they had corrected in the second half last week as well as improving overall in certain aspects on both sides of the ball.

Here are three keys to victory for Mississippi State against Toledo

Mississippi State needs to get the run game going

The first key to victory which will help them down the road if they want to win in SEC play is to be able to successfully run the ball. In four of the five seasons that Jeff Lebby was an offensive coordinator, his offenses rushed for over 200 yards per game. The only time one of his offenses did not rush for at least that much was last season at Oklahoma. However, they did average 182 rushing yards per game. With that being said, Mississippi State does not have to rush for over 200 yards per game this season, but they need to be close to about 175 yards per game. In two games, State has rushed for 281 yards which comes to 113.5 yards per game. They must establish the run this game for two reasons. The first reason is that success in the run game can help build confidence in the offense. The second reason is that they need to keep the defense honest. Even versus a MAC team such as Toledo, if State is forced to be one-dimensional in this game, they will struggle. Establishing the run is crucial, and they must start doing this tonight.

The Bulldog run defense has to be better

The second key to victory is that the defense must slow down the run. The defense got gashed last week, and one reason is that they kept running a 3-man front. That is not entirely on the players, but when they were running a 3-man front, the line was not getting a push. They were also struggling to get a push on the line of scrimmage versus Eastern Kentucky. Coleman Hutzler needs to come up with a gameplan to put his players in position to succeed. When the defense switched to a 4-man front last week, they did have more success at slowing the run. The hope is that the defense builds on what they did in the second half last week. If they do not do this, it will not only be a frustrating night on that side of the ball, but it will be a long season.

State's offensive line needs to show improvement

The last key to victory is that the offensive line must improve in both pass and run blocking. One reason why the run game has struggled is because the offensive line has struggled to get a good push up front. They will need to improve on that this week which can help them improve their chemistry and confidence. Blake Shapen has been great this year, but there are moments where he does not have enough time to throw. Shapen is mobile enough to scramble, but when State plays Texas or Georgia, this aspect of his game might not be as successful. Winning at the line of scrimmage is usually a telltale sign of who is going to win each game. Therefore the offensive line needs to improve in all aspects of their blocking if the offense is going to have any success the rest of the season.