Mississippi State @ No.8 LSU (-10) TV: ESPN 7:00pm Saturday
Daniel: After beating up on their usual slate of weak directional and hyphenated schools to start the season, Mississippi State is about to get tested big time. The Bulldogs face LSU, Texas A&M and Auburn in their next three games – all currently top-10 teams. This matchup with LSU is intriguing. The Tigers run the ball nearly 75% of the time, but MSU is built to stop the run with one of the most underrated and talented defensive fronts in the league. It could come down to if LSU can get Anthony Jennings going and if breakout star WR Travin Dural is fully healthy after being in a minor car accident this week. If the Tigers can do that and keep MSU quarterback Dak Prescott from doing too much, they should be able to take care of business at home, though they should definitely be on upset alert. Winner: LSU 24-20
Houston: If this game weren’t being played in the real Death Valley then I would be inclined to think that Mississippi State could be in line for a nice upset win this weekend, but as it stands this one looks to be favoring the Tigers. As good as Dak Prescott has played at times this season, LSU’s defense has looked better – which is amazing considering all of the talent that the Tigers lost to the NFL after last season. LSU quarterback Anthony Jennings looks to be their best option at the position and the Tigers sport a talented and deep stable of running backs that will take a lot of pressure off of the young quarterback. I could see a game similar to the one LSU played against Wisconsin to begin the season where the Tigers came out slow but rally in a big way in the second half to put the game out of reach. Beware of the Leonard Fournette Heisman pose. Winner: LSU 31-20
Reed: If this game was in Starkville, I’d be tempted to call the upset, but Tiger Stadium at night is just a place opposing teams don’t win. That said, Dak Prescott and the Bulldog offense is on a roll and they have the tools to make this one come down to the last possession. Prescott has accounted for 11 total TDs this season and is averaging over 90 yards rushing and 230 yards passing per game. Mississippi State can make some real noise in the SEC West this year, especially if they can pull the upset, but picking against the Mad Hatter at home in what should be a close game is borderline insane. LSU has top-5 talent. Mississippi State has top-30 talent. That’s a recipe for a Tiger home win. Winner: LSU 28-21
Patrick: LSU has not lost to Mississippi State since 1999 and I don’t see that streak coming to an end with the game played at night in Tiger Stadium where the Tigers have one of the best home-field advantages in all of college football.
Having said that, this is the best Mississippi State team that Dan Mullen has had during his tenure and if this game was played in Starkville, I would be more inclined to predict the upset, but I just can’t do it, not with the way the LSU defense has played the last 10 quarters. LSU is coming off back-to-back shutouts for the first time since 1985 and held Louisiana-Monroe to only 95 yards of offense last week. They have not allowed a score since Wisconsin’s first possession in the second half in the opener.
The level of competition is considerably higher than ULM and Sam Houston State and I’m a big fan of Dak Prescott and his dual-threat abilities and he has a nice array of weapons to work with, so I believe the recent trend of Mississippi State hanging with LSU into the second half continues, but the four-man rotation that LSU has in the backfield ultimately proves too much and the LSU secondary puts the clamps on Jameon Lewis and the Bulldog receivers.
If MSU is to pull off the upset it will be as a result of Chris Jones, Benardrick McKinney and Preston Smith who have led the Dawgs to the No. 2 rushing defense in the SEC and the No. 11 rush defense nationally with 80.33 yards per game. Winner: LSU 27-23
