Arizona at Mississippi State: Players of the Game

It was a tough loss for Arizona on Saturday night as they fell to the Mississippi State Bulldogs in overtime 31-24.

There was a lot to like, and a lot to not like, including the outcome. There were plenty of players who made their presence known, and felt, in Starkville and we’ll take a look at those players below.

Offense

Tetairoa McMillan, WR

• Stat Line: 8 rec, 161 yds, 1 TD

T-Mac blew the top off the beginning of the season. He started off slow, snagging his first pass in the 2nd quarter. That changed when he reeled in a 55-yarder that set up Arizona’s first touchdown to end the 1st half. After that he grabbed a 21-yard pass across the middle, an 11-yard touchdown in the back of the end zone, and a wonderful 49-yarder that showed him only be stopped by a defender slightly knocking him off balance, causing TMAC to step out of bounds. This was a breakout game for him and I’d expect him to continue to rise this year.

Defense

Jacob Manu, LB

• Stat Line: 12 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 1 sack

Manu was a wild man on Saturday. He was ALWAYS near the ball and did a fantastic job tackling after being a little rusty in the first half of the NAU game last week. His delayed blitz in the 4th quarter was a thing of beauty. He waited until the running back moved to engage another defender and then flew through the gap and brought down Will Rogers. Not to mention, Manu lived in the backfield and was involved in almost every negative play MSU had on offense.

Special Teams

Tyler Loop, K

• Stat Line: Field Goals: 1-for-1, Long of 36

Short and sweet, Loop was on it. He had a ton of pressure on him, not to mention a TON of cowbells ringing, to make the kick in order to send the game to overtime. He did it easily and knocked it through center aim. You can’t ask for more than that.

Honorable Mentions

• Arizona offensive line: 1 sack allowed, 1 penalty
• Martell Irby, DB: 6 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 FF
• Tanner McLachlan, TE: 4 rec, 47 yds