One statement rang true from Saturday’s early game at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville: the Bulldogs were going to win. Unfortunately for Mississippi State (5-5, 1-5), the adage applied to No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs (8-1, 5-1) after the Bulldogs scored five consecutive touchdowns en route to a 41-21 win.
Mississippi State allowed 567 yards of total offense, 303 yards on the ground, gave up three sacks, a turnover, and five penalties in an outing that did not live up to head coach Jeff Lebby’s standards. To make matters worse, Bulldog field general Blake Shapen was sidelined with an injury early in the second half. However, one positive for the maroon and white was a three-touchdown outing by freshman Kamario Taylor, who earned meaningful reps in Shapen’s absence.
Scoring summary
Despite the overall score, Mississippi State started with a 14-play drive where Taylor snuck into the end zone on a four-yard touchdown dive with 9:26 left in the first quarter. While Georgia had a few mishaps on the next possession, they countered with a 49-yard field goal from Placekicker Peyton Woodring that left 6:41 in the quarter. The home team led 7-3, but then the avalanche occurred.
Following an exchange of turnovers from each team, Georgia unleashed its offensive excellence with five consecutive touchdowns. Georgia running back Chauncey Bowens logged a four-yard touchdown run with 14:11 in the first half. With a 10-7 lead for Georgia, visiting quarterback Gunner Stockton threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to tight end Oscar Delp after a 13-play drive with 5:09 left in the first half. Stockton later tossed a 19-yard touchdown pass to Zachariah Branch to give Georgia a 24-7 lead at halftime.
In the opening possession of the second half, Georgia running back Nate Frazier ran for a 59-yard touchdown to cap a five-play drive, putting the visitors up 31-7. Following a sack against Shapen sack on third down, one that sidelined him for the remainder of the game, Georgia marched down three plays, as Stockman tossed a 64-yard touchdown pass. With 9:58 remaining in the third quarter, Georgia had a 38-7 lead over Mississippi State.
During these scoring possessions for Georgia, Mississippi State fumbled, turned a series over on downs, and punted three times due to sacks or penalties.
With some new energy after forcing a Georgia punt, Taylor marched the maroon and white’s offense down in 14 plays before running in a one-yard scamper for a touchdown. Georgia’s Woodring converted a 46-yard field goal with 12:03 left in the game to seal the door shut, preventing a Mississippi State comeback. Taylor countered on the final scoring drive down the field in five plays and ran in for his third rushing touchdown on a two-yard dive, but the damage was already done, and the road Bulldogs walked away victorious.
What the coach said
Saturday’s shortcoming on the scoreboard was the first non-overtime home loss of the year for Mississippi State. For Bulldog head coach Jeff Lebby, embracing a short memory and focusing on next week’s opponent is the message to his team.
“You have to be able to reset regardless of what’s happened. Good, bad, indifferent. You’ve got to be able to reset and go play,” Lebby said. “You have the ability just to control exactly what you can control.”
While Shapen’s injury status is unclear at this time, Lebby spoke about his relationship with his veteran signal caller. He added that he’s been pleased with the quarterbacks’ room this season, including what he’s seen from Taylor.
“I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a guy play as tough as he plays. And the way he’s gotten hit this year is to continue to get up and just battle and fight,” Lebby remarked when speaking of Shapen. “I have and again, just unbelievably proud of the group, both those guys and the entire group.”
Numbers never lie
While Mississippi State only had 322 yards total offense, 149 of those came in the ground game. Kamario Taylor led that effort with 53 yards and three touchdowns. Gunner Stockton was an efficient passer, going 18 of 29 for 264 yards with three touchdowns.
The ground game was Georgia’s dominant factor as Nate Frazier ran for 181 yards on 12 carries and a score. For Mississippi State, Brenen Thompson and Seydo Traore combined for 125 yards on nine receptions but no scores. Defensively, Mississippi State’s leading tackler, Jahron Manning, was kicked out of the game in the second half on a targeting call. The home team had four tackles for loss and one fumble recovery by safety Isaac Smith.
Next Up
Mississippi State plays on the road against No. 22 Missouri Saturday, Nov. 15, at 6:45 p.m. CT. The game will be aired on the SEC Network and participating SuperTalk Mississippi stations.
