Mississippi St.-Illinois Preview

When the ReliaQuest Bowl matchup was set on the primary Sunday in December, Mike Leach was Mississippi State’s head coach, Ryan Walters was Illinois’ defensive coordinator and each groups’ rosters had been teeming with stars.

However virtually nothing appears to be like the identical because the No. 24 Bulldogs (8-4) and Preventing Illini (8-4) put together to play on the primary Monday in 2023 in Orlando.

Leach, 61, handed away Dec. 12 attributable to problems from a coronary heart situation. The 21-year head coach, who posted a file of 158-107 for Texas Tech, Washington State and Mississippi State, suffered what was termed a “private well being difficulty” at his residence on Dec. 11. The Bulldogs promoted 36-year-old defensive coordinator Zach Arnett to go coach for the bowl recreation and past.

“We’ve got great guys on this program,” Arnett stated on the workforce’s Signing Day information convention. “They’re excited for this chance … it has been expressed and so they perceive that we’re doing precisely what Coach Leach would have needed. There isn’t a higher means for us to honor him and present respect to him and his household than to go on the market and play an entire recreation and compete like he would have anticipated us to.”

“Mike and I had been actually, actually good pals,” Illinois head coach Bret Bielema stated on SiriusXM. “And this entire dynamic of this bowl recreation is at a degree that nobody can actually describe. I can not think about the gamers’ feelings and coaches’ feelings on their aspect of the ball.”

Bielema signed a brand new contract in December that enhances his wage to $6 million by way of 2028. Amongst his first duties, except for the ReliaQuest Bowl, is to fill three spots on his workers.

Walters, who directed the nation’s No. 1 scoring protection (12.3 factors per recreation), was employed as Massive Ten West rival Purdue’s head coach on Dec. 13. Walters took affiliate head coach Kevin Kane, working backs coach Cory Patterson and a number of workforce analysts with him to West Lafayette, Ind.

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Bielema promoted defensive backs coach Aaron Henry to defensive coordinator — and Henry should piece collectively a secondary to face Mississippi State’s “Air Raid” offense that does not embrace All-American cornerback Devon Witherspoon and All-Massive Ten security Sydney Brown.

Each declared for the NFL draft and opted to not play within the bowl recreation — as has Sydney’s twin brother, Chase, who completed the common season because the nation’s No. 2 rusher with 1,643 yards.

Mississippi State should take care of its personal roster shortages as 10 gamers moved into the switch portal. Sophomore wideout Rara Thomas, who led the Bulldogs with 626 receiving yards (on 44 catches with seven touchdowns) introduced his switch to Georgia on Dec. 22. Dillon Johnson, the workforce’s No. 2 rusher with 488 yards, introduced his departure 4 days earlier than Leach’s demise.

This marks the thirteenth consecutive season Mississippi State has capped its season with a bowl recreation — and the Bulldogs maintain a 7-5 file since 2010.

Illinois hasn’t performed within the postseason since its loss within the 2019 Redbox Bowl. The Illini are looking for their first victory because the 2011 Battle Starvation Bowl, when defensive coordinator/interim coach Vic Koenning directed a 20-14 win over UCLA after the firing of Ron Zook.

–Discipline Degree Media