No. 16 Mississippi State will visit No. 22 Kentucky on Saturday night after outscoring its last three opponents by a combined 127-55.
And if coach Mike Leach is correct, the Bulldogs have more left in the tank for the Southeastern Conference clash in Lexington.
“Quite a bit, because you’re talking about every position on the team where you can get a little bit more,” he said. “We’re finishing runs better than we did last year, but we can certainly do better. We’re blocking the second level better than we did last year, but we could certainly do better.
“We’re playing faster than we did last year, but we could certainly play faster. Then defensively, we do a lot of good things, and we are kind of explosive and powerful on defense, but some of the big plays we could definitely shut down, too.”
Some might see it as coach-speak, but Leach knows this is no time for Mississippi State (5-1, 2-1 SEC) to bask in the glow of a dominant stretch. With No. 3 Alabama looming on the road next week, the Bulldogs certainly can’t get caught looking ahead to its SEC West neighbor.
If quarterback Will Rogers continues to execute as he has this year, Mississippi State should be in good shape. Rogers is completing nearly 72 percent of his passes through six games for 2,110 yards with a 22-3 touchdown-interception ratio.
In last week’s 40-17 rout of Arkansas, Rogers completed 31 of 48 passes for 395 yards with three touchdowns. The Bulldogs finished with 568 total yards, including a 100-yard game on the ground from Dillon Johnson to give the offense balance.
Meanwhile, Kentucky (4-2, 1-2) has fallen out of the Top 10 after consecutive SEC losses. The Wildcats struggled offensively for the second straight game last week in a 24-14 home defeat against unranked South Carolina.
Starting quarterback Will Levis (ankle/finger) watched that defeat from the sideline in a walking boot after suffering multiple injuries in a 22-19 defeat at Ole Miss the previous week. In his place, Kaiya Sheron hit 15 of 27 passes for 178 yards and a pair of touchdowns against the Gamecocks, but he also tossed a late interception and absorbed six sacks.
Kentucky coach Mark Stoops said Levis is a day-to-day proposition for Saturday. Stoops said Sheron’s teammates could have played better around him.
“Obviously, when you lose one of the top players in college football, it doesn’t help your football team, but that’s still no excuse for the way we played,” Stoops said. “There are certainly things we could do better. That holds true after watching the film.”
The Wildcats’ defense allowed the Gamecocks to roll up 179 yards on the ground and South Carolina broke up a 7-7 halftime score by scoring 17 consecutive points in the second half before UK scored late.
Mississippi State owns a 25-24 lead in the series, which dates back to 1914. The Bulldogs posted a 31-17 victory over Kentucky last October in Starkville as Rogers completed 36 of 39 passes for 344 yards with a touchdown.
–Field Level Media
