Mississippi
What to watch for: Mississippi State vs. Ole Miss
Following a 41-20 win over Southern Miss in Greg Knox’s first game this season as Mississippi State’s interim head coach, it’s officially Egg Bowl week. The Bulldogs host No. 12 Ole Miss on Thursday night for a 6:30 p.m. kickoff on ESPN.
The Rebels’ only two losses have come on the road against Alabama and Georgia, who are both unbeaten in Southeastern Conference play, and they have a signature home win over LSU in late September. Quarterback Jaxson Dart is nearing 3,000 passing yards this season and has thrown 19 touchdown passes to just five interceptions, and he has a trio of dynamic receivers in Tre Harris, Dayton Wade and Jordan Watkins.
What: Ole Miss at Mississippi State
When: 6:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: Davis Wade Stadium, Starkville
TV: ESPN
Betting line: Ole Miss by 11
Weather: Partly sunny skies with a high of 59 degrees and winds out of the north-northeast at 5 miles per hour, per AccuWeather
Records/rankings: MSU is 5-6 and 1-6 in the SEC. The Rebels are 9-2 and 5-2 in conference play. Ole Miss is ranked No. 12 in both the AP Top 25 and the AFCA Coaches Poll.
Series history: Ole Miss leads 64-47 with six ties. The Bulldogs defeated the Rebels in Oxford last year, with Ole Miss defeating the Bulldogs in Starkville in 2021. The series has been evenly matched of late — the teams have split their last 10 meetings.
Mississippi State update: The Bulldogs, at long last, are at full strength again offensively as quarterback Will Rogers and running back Jo’Quavious “Woody” Marks returned last week against Southern Miss. Knox, who also led MSU to a win in the 2017 TaxSlayer Bowl, improved to 2-0 as the Bulldogs’ interim head coach spanning two separate stints on the coaching staff.
Linebackers Jett Johnson and Nathaniel “Bookie” Watson each had a career day against the Golden Eagles, combining for 39 tackles, two sacks, a forced fumble and an interception. Johnson is one tackle ahead of Watson for the SEC lead, while Watson leads the conference in sacks with 10.
Ole Miss update: A win Thursday night would give the Rebels their second 10-win regular season in program history, joining the 2021 team. Harris, Wade and Watkins all have at least 700 receiving yards and the ability to stretch the field. Running back Quinshon Judkins is nearing another 1,000-yard season, although his production hasn’t quite reached last year’s heights.
The defense has been generally solid, especially up front. Edge rushers Jared Ivey and Cedric Johnson lead the way there. Ole Miss has also been opportunistic in the back end, tied for the SEC lead with 12 interceptions.
Ole Miss players to watch: QB Jaxson Dart, RB Quinshon Judkins, WR Tre Harris, DE Jared Ivey, S Trey Washington.
Prediction: It is the Egg Bowl, where chaos often reigns supreme, but the Rebels just have too much offensive firepower for MSU to keep up with. Ole Miss 38, Mississippi State 20.
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 57 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
Mississippi
Mississippi woman killed in two-vehicle crash in Grenada County
GRENADA COUNTY, Miss. (WJTV) – A Mississippi woman was killed during a two-vehicle crash in Grenada County.
Officials with the Mississippi Highway Patrol (MHP) said the crash occurred on Highway 7 just after 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 7.
Mississippi woman killed in head-on crash in Louisiana
According to MHP, a 2002 Toyota Sequoia was traveling north on the highway when the vehicle collided with a Mercedes van that was also traveling north.
The driver of the Mercedes, 53-year-old Loretta Hopkins, of Winona, died at the scene.
This crash remains under investigation by MHP.
Thanks for signing up!
Watch for us in your inbox.
Subscribe Now
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJTV.
Mississippi
Mississippi State’s Loss Doesn’t Stop SEC from Owning Week Two in AP Top 25
Outside of Mississippi State, Arkansas and Auburn, the SEC had a very successful Week Two of the college football season. The latest AP Top 25 poll reflects the strength of the SEC with 6 of the top 7 spots belonging to SEC teams.
Here’s a recap of how the ranked SEC teams fared in the second full week of the college football season:
Click here for a recap of the unranked SEC teams.
With the exception of giving up three points, this was probably exactly how Georgia expected this game to go. Carson Beck threw five touchdowns and the defense held Tennessee Tech to less than 150 yards of total offense. Anything less would be a surprise.
More than 100,000 people saw Texas come into Ann Arbor, Mich. and leave with a huge win. The Longhorns looked like the better team from the first drive of the game where they easily marched down the field. That Oct. 19 game in Austin against Georgia is looking better and better.
It was a lot closer than Alabama would’ve liked, but it’s a win that will fend off the “Nick Saban is gone, we’re doomed” crowd. At the same time, though, there were some things that crowd could point to at a later time.
Two games against inferior competition and Ole Miss has outscored its opponents 129-3. They’ll take a slight step up in competition next week against Wake Forest, but the Rebels are still about a month away from playing a team that will truly test them.
Missouri’s schedule just took an unexpected bump in its level of difficulty with No. 24 Boston College joining the top 25. Bill O’Brien is brilliant at game planning and calling plays (not so much with making trades, but that hasn’t reached the college ranks yet). Missouri needs to be on upset alert (and ready to stop the run).
This happens every year. Tennessee looks really good to start the season and by the end Volunteer fans are saying next year is their year. But maybe this year is their year with the way Nico Iamaleava has been playing.
Of the two SEC newcomers, Texas is getting most of the attention which makes sense based on the current teams. But folks, don’t sleep on the Sooners. They ruined many of my own childhood memories growing up in Texas. This week’s way-too close game doesn’t help that argument, but think long term.
LSU was one of three SEC teams to play FCS schools after playing top 25 teams last week. The Tigers and Texas A&M both lost, while Georgia won. So, it’s not surprising to see each of them play FCS teams and neither were any of the results.
SEC Week 2 Power Rankings: Which Teams Are Contenders or Pretenders?
WATCH: Mississippi State’s Bowl Hopes Take a Hit with Arizona State Defeat
Mississippi State Crumbles in the Trenches: What Went Wrong Against Arizona State?
Mississippi
Arizona State RB Cam Skattebo ‘disrespected’ by Mississippi State football’s defensive game plan
Cam Skattebo slammed Mississippi State on the football field on Saturday night and also took another jab afterward in his postgame press conference.
The Arizona State running back, following a 30-23 Sun Devils win at Mountain America Stadium, took exception to MSU only utilizing three defenders on the line of scrimmage. The results were damning.
Arizona State (2-0) rushed for 346 yards. It was the most allowed by Mississippi State (1-1) in a game since Arkansas in 2016. Skattebo’s 262 rushing yards on 33 carries were the second-most in ASU history.
“They couldn’t stop us in that three-down front,” Skattebo said when asked what made ASU’s run game successful. “Honestly, we all felt disrespected with them in a three-down front. You can’t come in here and put five guys in the box and expect to stop six. I don’t know. We took that a little disrespectful, and we rushed for what over 300 yards? Something around there. It is what it is.”
Skattebo, a 5-foot-11, 215-pound junior, also led Arizona State with 35 receiving yards on three catches.
“I knew these dudes were big and heavy,” he said. “We knew going into the game they weren’t as physical as most other teams but they’re heavy. So when they hit you, it hurts, no matter how hard they’re coming — 300 pounds at 10 miles per hour or 16 miles per hour hurts the same. I just kept my feet moving.”
Mississippi State trailed 30-3 in the third quarter but scored 20 unanswered points to cut the score to 30-23 with 5:27 to play. The Bulldogs never touched the ball again, with the Sun Devils running out the clock on 12 plays.
Skattebo had a game-sealing 39-yard rush that allowed ASU to kneel down.
“Until the end, we had our ups and downs there, but that was fun,” he said. “You can ask these guys up front, bullying dudes, grown men that are 300 pounds, that’s fun to us. That’s fun to the front-five, the front-seven and the running back. The quarterback probably hates it. He probably likes watching, but he didn’t complain one time the whole game.”
Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.
-
Politics1 week ago
Trump impersonates Elon Musk talking about rockets: ‘I’m doing a new stainless steel hub’
-
World1 week ago
Brussels, my love? Is France becoming the sick man of Europe?
-
Politics1 week ago
Harris says no regrets about defending Biden fitness for office
-
World1 week ago
Locals survey damage after flooding in eastern Romania
-
World1 week ago
Why is Belgium struggling to name a European Commissioner?
-
World1 week ago
Taiwan court orders release of ex-Taipei mayor arrested in corruption probe
-
Politics1 week ago
'For election purposes': Critics balk at Harris' claim she will 'enforce our laws' at southern border
-
World7 days ago
Seven EU members hadn’t received any post-Covid funding by end-2023