STARKVILLE – The storyline is predictable.
But it comes nowhere close to telling the story.
Sure, when Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott leads the Bulldogs onto the field for Saturday night’s clash with No. 8 LSU in Baton Rouge, he’ll be going home, and he’ll have the hopes of a fan base yearning for a signature win on his shoulders.
A native of Haughton, Louisiana, Prescott grew up just a few hours from LSU’s campus, and after he committed to play at Mississippi State during his senior season at Haughton High, the in-state Tigers came calling with a last-second scholarship offer. But Prescott stayed true to his word and signed with Mississippi State, and now he will return to his home state in search of the biggest win of his life when he leads the Bulldogs into Tiger Stadium for the first time as MSU’s starting quarterback.
“I considered going to LSU, but really, my heart was already set on Mississippi State,” Prescott said. “They recruited my mom more than they did me. It was an honor to get the offer, but I had been committed to Mississippi State for three or four months, and my mind was already made.”
Yet while Prescott’s homecoming story will be told in the days leading up to Saturday night’s 6 p.m. kickoff, not a bit of it is relevant to the Bulldogs’ task at hand, which is figuring out a way to beat the No. 8 team in the country.
That’s where Prescott’s focus remains.
“I’m not really thinking about that,” Prescott said. “I mean, it will be cool for my friends and my family who get to be there. They don’t get to see our games all that much and all they ever see is LSU. So that part of it is cool, but other than that, I’m just focused on going down there and getting a win.”
So the question stands: With Prescott leading the way, exactly what does MSU’s offense have to do to solve the riddle of Tiger Stadium?
It is a mystery that has eluded 23 straight MSU teams dating back to the school’s last victory there in 1991. That streak includes consecutive homes victories against the Bulldogs, wins by an average of 22 points per game. Only twice during the streak, a 28-20 loss in 1996 and a 45-38 overtime loss in 2000, have the Bulldogs stayed within 10 points of the Tigers.
Still, this is a different group of Bulldogs flashing a different resolve.
So far this season, head coach Dan Mullen’s offense has been prolific in three straight non-conference wins to open the season. The Bulldogs, behind 12 total touchdowns from Prescott, have averaged 529 yards per game so far this season, good for fourth in the SEC. With 514 total yards in last Saturday’s win at South Alabama, the Bulldogs topped the 500-yard mark for the fourth consecutive game, the longest such streak in school history.
But it’s a streak that could be in jeopardy against an LSU defense that hasn’t been challenged this season. The Tigers, off to the seventh 3-0 start in 10 seasons under coach Les Miles, lead the SEC in scoring defense (eight points per game), passing defense (94.3 yards per game) and total defense (205.3 yards per game).
To Prescott, these facts are much more relevant than where he played high school football.
“It was cool the last time I went down there when I was a redshirt freshman,” Prescott said. “But really, none of that means anything. It’s all about us, all about the team and how we play. A win like this would mean everything for our program.”
So far this season, Prescott has lived up to offseason hype that had him pegged as Second Team All-SEC pick in the preseason. Through three games, the dual-threat quarterback has passed for 696 yards and a conference-leading nine touchdowns; rushed 40 times for 298 yards and two touchdowns; and added a 24-yard touchdown catch in last Saturday’s win at South Alabama.
In a word, the former Louisiana high school star has been dominant.
“He’s strong, a guy that stands back in the pocket, knows what he’s looking at, makes the throws and has the ability to pull it down,” LSU head coach Les Miles said of Prescott. “He runs with strength. I don’t know exactly how fast he is, but, you know, he carves through the ground very quickly and when you go to tackle him, you better hit him hard. You better take him off his feet because he’s just a big, physical kid.”
Returning to their roots
Like their quarterback, the performances of starting center Dillon Day and tailback Josh Robinson will have a profound impact on MSU’s ability to escape Tiger Stadium with the Bulldogs’ first win over a top 10 opponent in Mullen’s six-year tenure. And like Prescott, both are from Louisiana, as Day is a fifth-year senior from Monroe who has more starts than any other member of the Bulldogs while Robinson is a redshirt junior from Franklinton currently enjoying his best stretch as a Bulldog.
Robinson was a former three-star prospect who never received an offer from LSU, just like Day, a two-star offensive lineman at perennial power West Monroe High.
With Robinson, MSU has a starting tailback who has averaged 6.2 yards per carry with three touchdowns in the early-going, and he’s amassed 295 yards on the ground.
But like Prescott, neither Robinson nor Day are concerned about the homecoming. Instead, the Louisiana prep products are singularly focused on earning their biggest win as Bulldogs.
“Maybe that was a big deal for me earlier in my career,” Day said, ” but now, it’s all about going down there and getting a win. There might be jitters at the beginning just like every other game. But at the end of the day, this is just another game. That’s how we have to approach it.”
Though the Bulldogs undoubtedly follow the lead of Prescott, the play of Robinson and Day could have just as big of an impact on MSU’s chances at victory. While LSU has suffocated opposing quarterbacks and receivers to lead the conference and country in pass defense, holes have been shown in the Tigers’ front seven.
In LSU’s season opener against Wisconsin, the Badgers ran for 268 yards, the bulk of that yardage coming before a bizarre decision to abandon the running game in the fourth quarter. As a result, Wisconsin’s 24-7 third-quarter lead evaporated and turned into a 28-24 loss, but the blueprint left by tailback Melvin Gordon (140 yards on 18 carries) remains.
“We always want to be able to run the ball,” Day said. “But when you get into SEC play, playing against teams like LSU, running the ball becomes even more important.”
Defensive dominance
Thus far in 2014, Mississippi State’s game plan has been clear: Use Prescott’s unique dual-threat ability to create balance across the board. And it has worked. The Bulldogs have averaged 266 yards per game through the air through three games, and 260 on the ground.
It’s that balance that Prescott figures is a key to beating the Tigers on the road.
“We just have to keep that balance up,” Prescott said. “I feel like I’m a balanced quarterback anyway because I can run the ball and throw it. So I think that’s when our offense is at its best.”
And while Prescott and Robinson have provided the bulk of the production in the ground game, the Bulldogs have had a much more varied approach through the air, as 14 Bulldogs have caught passes from Prescott and backup Damian Williams, led by redshirt senior Jameon Lewis, who has 10 catches for 107 yards.
That balance of being able to move the ball on the ground and through the air will be challenged by LSU, which has allowed a paltry 94 passing yards per game. It’s also a balance that hasn’t gone unnoticed by LSU coach Les Miles.
“I think they know exactly what they want to do,” Miles said of MSU’s offense. ” I think they’re focused. There is, again, a talented team there. It’s not just a quarterback, guys that can catch it, offensive line that can block it, running backs that can run. It’s a talented team.”
The Tigers have been able to slow down opposing quarterbacks with a combination of pressure and coverage, accumulating five quarterback sacks and four interceptions thus far.
The result has been a suffocating Tigers’ defense that hasn’t allowed a point since the third quarter of the season opener and has posted two consecutive shutouts.
But looking more closely at LSU’s 3-0 start reveals that LSU’s pass defense has feasted on offenses less diverse than Mississippi State. Wisconsin currently ranks No. 111 in FBS in passing yardage and UL-Monroe, which lost 31-0 at Tiger Stadium last Saturday, ranks 86th. LSU’s other opponent, Sam Houston State, ranks 20th in passing in FCS.
“This is probably the fastest defense I’ve ever faced,” Day said of LSU. “That’s a challenge. I’m a senior, and I’ve blocked a lot of those guys before, but we will have to deal with their speed.”
Follow Brandon Walker on Twitter @BWonStateBeat
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