Mississippi State's Identity Provides Taxing Challenge for Kentucky

Mike Leach and his air raid will make its return to Kroger Field on Saturday night.

No. 22 Kentucky's two-game skid has the Wildcats' backs against the wall in the middle of the season. 

A highly-encouraging start to the year has quickly turned into a 4-2 record, with projections for the rest of the 2022 campaign quickly declining. The road isn't getting any easier, either. 

The Cats will welcome the No. 16 Mississippi State Bulldogs (5-1, 2-1 SEC) to Kroger Field this Saturday, in what has become a must-win situation for Mark Stoops' crew. 

“Moving on to Mississippi State. Very good team," Stoops said. "Obviously, any time you are playing Mike Leach, he can move the football. They are very good at what they do."

Leach, who's amidst his third season as head coach of the Bulldogs, has got his air raid offense up-and-running in Starkville, slowly but surely picking apart SEC defenses. Mississippi State leads the conference with 354.67 passing yards-per-game. 

At the helm of that wicked passing attack is highly touted junior QB Will Rogers. Through six games, the Mississippi native has completed 202 passes for a grand total of 2,110 yards. His 71 percent completion rate and 22 touchdowns through the air both lead the SEC. 

"Their quarterback, Will Rogers, is playing at a very high level, extremely comfortable and in total command of that offense," Stoops said of the QB. "Will is very, very comfortable back there. It’s hard, because as you pressure, they have answers. They are very efficient getting the ball down the field, so there’s always that fine line when you play them." 

The air raid isn't as big and bad as it may sound. Rogers won't be slinging the football 50 yards down the field on every other play. Instead, he's going to dink and dunk his away around the defense, allowing his receivers to do some heavy lifting, tiring defenses, eventually setting up those big shots. 

Six players have caught over 20 passes for the Bulldogs this season, proving just how many reliable targets consistently surround Rogers on every drive. 

"They have two dynamic running backs and always have playmakers on the perimeter," Stoops said. 

Leach knows how to get his running backs involved in every facet of the offense. Dillon Johnson and Jo'quavious Marks have totaled 647 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on the ground. In the passing game, they've notched 50 receptions and 339 yards. 

The offense as a whole has put up at least 30 points in every game this season, averaging 37.6 points-per-game in three contests against SEC foes. 

But that's not where it ends. The Bulldogs have developed a solid defense across Leach's tenure, thanks to defensive coordinator Zach Arnett. 

According to Football Outsiders, Miss State boasts a top-20 defense in the nation. While it doesn't particularly excel in any metric, the Bulldogs know how to find the football and get it back to their offense. Their eight interceptions, four of which have come via junior cornerback Emmanuel Forbes, are tied for the SEC-lead.

Miss State has allowed 30 or more points just once this season, in Baton Rouge against LSU. The stout group is led by many, many veterans. Nine of the 11 starters on defense are seniors in some, way, shape or form, while the other pair are juniors. 

Stoops acknowledged that experience on Monday at his game-week press conference. 

"Defensively, I think they're doing a very good job. Zach Arnett (has) got those guys playing. Very experienced group, they have a bunch of guys on their two-deep that have played a boatload of football. I want to say maybe eight returning starters and bunch of guys in the two-deep that are juniors and seniors, so very experienced," Stoops said. 

Arnett's success stems from an intriguing 3-3-5 defensive scheme, something Stoops says gives many teams headaches. 

"They create a lot of havoc on a lot of people. They do a nice job with it," he said. "I think they’re very comfortable, they have great experience, I think Zach (Arnett) mixes it up and I think their team can handle it."

That same defense held Kentucky to just 17 points in Starkville a season ago, in what was the worst offensive game of the season for the Wildcats. QB Will Levis threw for just 150 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. 

"They adjust and make calls based on formation sometimes and what you’re doing," Stoops continued. "They’re efficient at what they’re doing, so anytime they’re in that kind of configuration they can bring a lot of havoc in a lot of different ways."

Mississippi State has an identity on offense and defense. Kentucky cannot say the same entering its biggest game of the season. It's expected that Levis will return under center, but following a clunky 24-14 loss at home to South Carolina, who's throwing the football may be one of several question marks in Lexington this Saturday. 

The Bulldogs present a fork in the road for UK: Get back on track and fight for some respect down the stretch, or continue to spiral downward.

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