TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama is coming off their most impressive win of the season, a 24-10 victory over #15 ranked Ole Miss, and will look to build on that success when they head to Mississippi State to take on the 2-2 Bulldogs.
Heading into halftime down 7-6, it looked as if the Crimson Tide were in for another down to the wire
finish. Instead, they would come out and dominate the Rebels in the second half. The defense only
allowed three points, and the offense finally looked complete with Jalen Milroe stretching the defense
downfield and the offensive line leading a touchdown drive to put the game away.
The offense, especially the offensive line and Milroe, look like they have found their stride. Milroe
found Jermaine Burton for a huge 54-yard gain and freshman Jalen Hale led the team in receiving,
highlighted by a 33-yard touchdown catch. Leading 17-10 heading into the fourth quarter, Jase
Mclellan rushed for over 50-yards capped off by an 8-yard touchdown run.
They will face a defense in Mississippi State that has struggled the past two weeks. After starting out the
season beating SE Louisiana and Arizona, the Bulldogs have dropped their past two games both in SEC
play. Two weeks ago, Jayden Daniels led the LSU Tigers into Starkville and threw all over the Bulldog
defense and walked out with a 41-14 victory. Mississippi State would then head to South Carolina to
face another top quarterback in Spencer Rattler. Rattler would finish 18/20 with 288 yards and three
touchdowns.
Against LSU, the Bulldog offense struggled, but against the Gamecocks Will Rogers threw for 487 yards
and wide receiver Lideatrick Griffin finished with seven catches and 256 yards. However, they were held
to only 32 rushing yards. The Tide will look to stuff the run once again and force Mississippi State to be
one dimensional. Both Kool-AId Mckinstry and Terrion Arnold will welcome the challenge of Griffin.
Milroe and company will need to establish the run early and mix in the quick passing game to force the
Bulldog defenders to come down in the box before taking shots with the play action passing game. If
the offensive line can do what they did late in the Ole Miss game, McClellan and Roydell Williams should
be able to have success against a Bulldog front that has allowed 120 rushing yards per game this season.
The game will kick off at 8 p.m. on ESPN, with the Tide looking to stay undefeated in SEC play and the
Bulldogs trying to snap their two-game losing streak.
Nazario Pangallo is a contributor for WVUA-FM Sports.
