Game Day: Florida at No. 23 Mississippi State, 6 pm (ESPN)
Saturday, September 29, 2018 | Football, Chris Harry
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By: Chris Harry, Senior Writer
STARKVILLE, Miss. — The talk last week was of a big game at Tennessee that could double as a gauge of just how far down the Southeastern Conference pecking the Florida Gators rested.
Answer: Not as low as the Volunteers.
The one-sided 47-21 road win may have featured the most points ever scored by a UF team in Knoxville, but it did not make any declarative statement other than the Gators (3-1, 1-1) being well ahead of the Volunteers, both in their first season under new coaches. The Florida coach, of course, is Dan Mullen, and his next turn on the sidelines (a familiar sidelines, at that) figures to reveal far more about his team that what he learned a week ago.
In fact, he may actually know more about Saturday night's opponent, Mississippi State (3-1, 0-1), than he does about his own.
From 2000-2008, the Bulldogs went a combined 37-69 and won just 17 conference games during those nine seasons. In 2009, enter Mullen, the former offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach under Urban Meyer at both Utah and Florida. Over his nine seasons, MSU went 69-46 and won 33 league games, and along the way ascended during the 2014 season to its first No. 1 ranking and eventually to an Orange Bowl berth with Dak Prescott at quarterback.
MSU's current QB, senior Nick Fitzgerald, is a duel-threat weapon groomed for three seasons by Mullen and will be in the NFL next year. This season, he's completed 51 percent of his passes for 542 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions, plus another 286 yards and five TDs rushing. He needs just 176 rushing yards to pass Tim Tebow (2,957 yards) as the SEC's all-time leader in that category. That stat alone should get the attention of Florida fans.
The Bulldogs' other top weapons include tailback Kylin Hill (307 yards, 3 TDs), plus wide receivers Osirus Mitchell (9 catches, 184 yards, 2 TDs) and Stephen Guidry (8-74-1), both averaging better than 20 yards per reception. The MSU offense is fifth in the league and 25th nationally at 491.0 yards per game.
Mississippi State quarterback Nick Fitzgerald is the guy who makes the Bulldogs go and is on track to be a high pick in the 2019 NFL draft.
Defensively, Mississippi State boasts the SEC's top-ranked unit, allowing just 269.3 yards per game. That's also good enough for eighth in the nation, making MSU the third opponent the Gators have faced this season ranked in the current top 25 in total defense, joining Kentucky (11th) and Tennessee (21st). Worth noting: That defense was absolutely gashed by Benny Snell (165 yards, 4 TDs) in a 28-7 road loss at Kentucky last week, the same tailback and team that thundered for 303 rushing yards in a 27-16 win at Gainesville two weeks earlier.
UF quarterback Feleipe Franks (52.6 percent, 742 yards, 12 TDs, 2 INTs) threw three TDs without an interception on the road last week, but the environment (and talent) this time out will represent a far tougher challenge. The Gators will have to deal with a run defense (121.0 ypg) and pass defense (148.3 ypg) rated ninth and first in the SEC, respectfully. The Florida offense (383.5 ypg) is 11th in the conference and 93rd in the country.
Last week, the Gators forced six turnovers and turned them into 24 points, but don't count on the Bulldogs to be anywhere as careless with the football against a UF defense that now leads the nation in takeaways with 14.
And then there are those infernal cowbells.
Past Florida teams — some far better and way more talented than this one — have not reacted well to the ear-splitting racket generated by the crowd at Wade Stadium, figures to be even more jacked up for the so-called "Mullen Bowl." Since the Southeastern Conference expanded in 1992, Florida has won just four of its eight meetings against Mississippi State, including a 1-3 mark on the road, where the losses have been memorable for their orange and blue ugliness.
* 1992 — UF was the reigning conference champion and ranked No. 13, but got dominated by the No. 24 Bulldogs in a 30-6 loss on a Thursday night when two-time SEC Player of the Year Shane Matthews had his Mississippi homecoming and Heisman Trophy hopes dashed with five interceptions and five sacks. The Gators did not score a touchdown and were outscored 20-0 after halftime.
* 2000 — MSU tailbacks Dicenzo Miller and Dontae Walker rushed for 172 yards and 156 yards, respectively, as the Bulldogs churned out 351 yards and four touchdowns on the ground, which was slightly better than the minus-28 yards the Gators totaled in a 47-35 trampling. UF tried three different quarterbacks (Jesse Palmer, Rex Grossman and Brock Berlin, all of whom attempted at least 16 passes) on the way to 494 passing yards, but the defense was not up to the challenge on the road, as MSU finished with 517 total yards.
* 2004 — The Bulldogs were 1-5 when the 4-2 Gators came to town and there was a lot of "noise in the system," as then-UF coach Ron Zook used to say. The noise got even louder after MSU rushed for 251 yards, including a 37-yard dash by Jerious Norwood with just 37 seconds left to give the Bulldogs a 38-31 victory. UF fired Zook the next day, effective at the end of the regular season. What will 2018 bring?
Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. on the ESPN, with Dave Pasch on play-by-play, Greg McElroy providing analysis and Tom Luginbill working the sideline. Replays will air Sunday at 4:30 a.m. on ESPN and 5 p.m. on SEC Network, then again Monday at 1 p.m. on ESPNU and 8:30 on SEC Network. They'll also be available on the ESPN app and WatchESPN.com.
Click here for for a station list of the Gator IMG Sports Network broadcast, with pre-game coverage starting at 1 p.m.
Finally, follow senior staff writers Scott Carter and Chris Harry on Twitter (@GatorsScott and @GatorsChris) for commentary and analysis throughout the game. FloridaGators.com will have fresh coverage content late Saturday night and early Sunday, as well.
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