ReliaQuest Bowl: Get to know the Mississippi State Bulldogs

Mississippi State is laying with heavy hears after the sudden and tragic death of head coach Mike Leach. The Bulldogs will be coached by former defensive coordinator Zach Arnett, who was named the permanent head coach on December 15.

The Bulldogs (8-4, 4-4 Southeastern Conference) finished third in the SEC West division this past season. They finished the regular season with a win over rivals Ole Miss.

MSU is led by prolific quarterback Will Rogers. Rogers threw for 3,713 yards and 34 touchdowns with just six interceptions.

Orange and Blue News caught up with Jack Byers from BullDogBlitz.com to get the inside scoop on Mississippi State.

What is the general feeling surrounding the team after the loss of Mike Leach?

Jack Byers: Obviously, the team took it pretty hard but it sounds like they're fired up to play this bowl game. They like Zach Arnett and I think they're fired up to play for him. The definitely want to honor Mike Leach.

Nothing will change on the defensive side. Arnett will still call the defense. On the other side, Mississippi State didn't have an offensive coordinator. Mike Leach was the coordinator. It sounds like, Steve Spurrier Jr., one of the wide receivers coaches, is going to be the one who is calling plays. That's something he's never done before.

Mike Leach offenses were always tough to slow down. What are some of the strengths this year?

JB: It's definitely a unique offense. There are no tight ends. Its all wide receivers and running backs out there, and a lot of four-wide. The line up with a lot of three receiver and two running back set. Illinois hasn't see a lot of offenses like that. Purdue is probably closest but even that is a lot different.

They did run the ball a little bit more this season. I don't know how that's going to look in the bowl game. One of their top running backs Dillon Johnson ended up in the Transfer Portal.

For an offense that throws a lot, it's kind of a death by paper cut offense. There are a lot of short and intermediate routs. A lot of passes to the running backs. You don't see a lot of deep shots downfield.

What does QB Will Rogers bring to the field?

JB: Will Rogers a very good decision maker and is patient in the pocket. Sometimes, that's not a great thing because the offensive line has struggled at times. But he's calm and composed. He's content with finding the check-downs, the short routes.

Rogers doesn't have a huge arm, but he's pretty accurate. He's not the most mobile guy, but every now and then he'll make a play with his feet. He'll command the offense and hit the open guys. He's really improved this year at making checks at the line of scrimmage.

How did the Mississippi State defense fare this season and how are the players to watch?

JB: The defense was the strength of the team. The offense has chewed up a lot of clock and that's helps out the defense. The defense was phenomenal, especially the linebackers. They play a 3-3-5 defense. They like brining the linebackers up to the line of scrimmage.

Nathaniel Watson and Jett Johnson were two of the leading tacklers in the SEC this season. I don't know if (edge) Tyrus Wheat is going to play. He did declare for the NFL Draft. He was their leading sack guy.

Emmanuel Forbes was an All-American at cornerback. He set the NCAA record for pick-6's. He declared for the NFL Draft, but he has been practicing.

Defensive tackle Jaden Crumedy ended up coming back late in the year after getting injured in training camp, and that really helped their run defense out. He only played in four games and set his career high for tackles for loss.

What were teams able to do to slow down MSU in their four losses?

JB: The biggest things in those losses was that Mississippi State's offensive line not being able to adapt to some of the pressure that other teams were bringing. The teams MSU had the most success against were rushing three and dropping eight against the Air Raid, and that didn't really do much.

It was the teams that were bringing pressure like LSU and Kentucky that gave Mississippi State's offensive line a lot of trouble. Those teams were disguising a lot of blitzes and bringing different guys off the edge.

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