Hungry Mississippi State fans waited nine long months for Dan Mullen's coaching debut. Then, they had to wait about 30 extra minutes because of lightning that accompanied a pre-game rainstorm. That's not all. They then had to wait another two sluggish quarters before Mullen's Bulldogs carried through on his preseason vow: "THIS is going to be exciting." Finally, it was. Here's some of what we can take from State's 45-7 victory over Jackson State in the first-ever meeting between a Southeastern Conference team and one from the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
Great idea. All tickets were sold. Tail-gating fans jammed this lovely, old campus. State got what it wanted, a capacity crowd and a relatively easy victory. Jackson State earned the biggest payday in school history. This was a no-brainer. Let's do it again. Next time, JSU, bring a long snapper.
JSU was over-matched with SEC foe Mississippi State Bulldogs. Coach Comegy had no answers for Bulldog attack before full house of 54,232 fans.QB Rutland struggles but keeps job
The saga surrounding Tray Rutland continued Saturday as Jackson State lost 45-7 to Mississippi State at Scott Field. The JSU quarterback was named the starter last week despite coach Rick Comegy having named redshirt freshman Dedric McDonald the No. 1 the previous two weeks. Rutland's performance was fairly consistent with what fans have seen over the past few years. There were flashes of brilliance, like his 52-yard pass to Keenan Tillman and a 32-yarder to Carlos Everett. Then there was the interception to Corey Broomfield, who returned it 43 yards for a touchdown. Rutland threw a touch pass down the middle of the field when he should have put more arm into the pass.
He completed 8 of 19 passes for 132 yards with two interceptions and zero touchdowns. Rutland led JSU with 46 rushing yards on 14 carries. "I thought (he) was spotty," JSU coach Rick Comegy said. "He made some good calls and some good checks ... but I know Tray Rutland has a better football game in him than what he displayed today. There's a lot we got to talk about from an offensive point of view."
Kareem Copeland's Talking Points
Special teams meltdown. There's a sure-fire way to take yourself out of a game when playing up a division - poor special teams play. That's exactly what Jackson State put on the field on Saturday. JSU found out only this week that long snapper LaDarius Kimp, who was a late addition to camp, was not eligible. So, receiver Cedric Dixon was forced into action with just two days practice, coach Rick Comegy said.
Dixon, who just returned from an injury to practice this week, had three snaps on punts that never got six inches off the ground. Punter Brett Bennett had to dive on two, giving MSU the ball inside JSU's 25-yard line both times. Fortunately for JSU, the Bulldogs only came away with seven points after missing a field goal on the second miscue. The question is: Why hadn't another long snapper been prepared if Kimp's paperwork wasn't submitted and his status was in doubt?What happened to the GP?
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