Three Areas of Focus for Mississippi State Football During the Open Date
Mississippi State had some good, bad and very ugly moments in its 30-6 loss to Alabama over the weekend.
The Bulldogs now have an open date in the calendar: something that is much needed after a few weeks of stiff competition. During this time, the team will put in countless hours on the practice field in hopes of finishing its final four games with big victories. No win will come easy to Mississippi State, as it faces Auburn, Georgia, East Tennessee State and Ole Miss to round out the regular season. With a little bit of work in a few areas that have had significant problems, there is still a chance that the Bulldogs can win at least the majority of their remaining matchups.
Here are a few key areas in which MSU must improve as it takes a weekend away from college football action.
1. Limiting dropped passes.
Quarterback Will Rogers went 30-for-60 passing for 231 yards against Alabama on Saturday. Those numbers aren't great by any means, but many of the mistakes don't rest entirely on his shoulders. Nearly every wide receiver who touched the field had at least one dropped pass. Some of those drops came on hard contact, while others simply weren't hauled in despite receivers being wide open and easily able to grasp the ball. The offense will never work if MSU's group of wideouts is unable to catch the football under more difficult circumstances. The Bulldogs were plagued with these issues before the season even started, leading many to wonder when they would reemerge. This week seems like a great time to revisit the issue and work toward improvement.
2. Finding a solution on special teams... quickly.
Mississippi State has not had much luck in finding a consistent kicker this season. Massimo Biscardi started the season as the team's leading placekicker before missing multiple extra-point attempts, eventually being benched in favor of Ben Raybon. Raybon made his first four field goals of the year -- including an impressive 53-yarder -- before missing one in each matchup against Texas A&M and Arkansas. Now, Leach seems to have turned back to Biscardi, who is having more struggles in a different way. The graduate student has made each of his two extra-point attempts since returning against Kentucky but missed a 43-yard field goal try last weekend. Kicking can't improve overnight, but it might be in the Bulldogs' best interest to evaluate each kicker's strengths and adjust before it's too late.
3. Defending downfield passing plays.
The Bulldogs' defense was formidable against Alabama, holding the Crimson Tide to a season-low 29 total rushing yards in the matchup and just 30 points. The game could have been much closer with a better offensive performance. If there is one area that Mississippi State's defensive unit must improve upon, it's limiting long passing plays downfield. The team gave up seven passing plays of at least 15 yards, including one touchdown. Although the majority of MSU's toughest remaining games feature a stronger rushing attack, the Bulldogs' secondary still needs to adjust and strive to have better coverage on open receivers.
