Cowbell Corner Crystal Ball: Predicting Vanderbilt-Mississippi State

The Bulldogs will look to snap a four-game losing streak when they battle the Commodores on Saturday

It took a few weeks, but the Cowbell Corner Crystal Ball is finally off and running. After inaccurately predicting even the victor in Mississippi State's first three games this season, the last two weeks, the crystal ball has not only accurately called MSU defeats, but also nailed the correct final score two weeks ago before being only seven points off last week at Alabama. So let's try this thing again shall we?

This week, Mississippi State enters as a heavy favorite against a Vanderbilt team that, quite frankly, isn't good. The Commodores have been lifeless offensively and haven't been all that much better on the defensive side. To be fair though, the Bulldogs have looked just as inept on offense the last four weeks, though MSU is buoyed by one of the Southeastern Conference's top defensive groups.

It's that defense that provides confidence in this week's prediction. Even if Mississippi State continues to struggle offensively, it feels like the Bulldogs can do at least enough to pull out a victory as the defense shines. 

Still, this week could mean so much more for MSU than just getting back in the win column. If the Bulldogs can finally, for the first time since the season opener, consistently move the football down the field and put some points up, it bodes extremely well for State moving forward. If MSU can begin to show improvement offensively, given the team's stout defense, it allows the Bulldogs to go into the final four games of the season feeling as though they have at least a decent chance to win a couple of them. And if State indeed rebounds from its 1-4 start to the year to win three of its final five, at this point that'd have to be considered a success given the tremendous struggle of the last four games.

It all starts with Vanderbilt though. A loss would be absolutely devastating and would perhaps be foreshadowing of a rough final month of the season where 1-9 would seem like a very possible destination.

The guess here is that the MSU offense indeed shows some sign of life. It's hard to see it clicking on all cylinders after the group has put together basically nothing since September, but given the opposition and another week to grow and develop, the Bulldogs should move the football enough to win. Meanwhile the State defense could be in line for an incredibly stingy showing against Vanderbilt's woeful offense.

When it's said and done, the Bulldogs should be feeling at least a bit better about themselves as they taste victory for the first time since the trip down to Baton Rouge six weeks back.

Cowbell Corner Prediction: Mississippi State 31, Vanderbilt 7

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