Arkansas Upends #16 Bulldogs, 21-14

Saturday, October 3

Starkville

6:30 PM

Mississippi State

1-1 , 1-1

Arkansas

1-1 , 1-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Arkansas

Mississippi State

Arkansas Upends #16 Bulldogs, 21-14

October 03, 2020 | Football

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By: Mikaela Elizondo, Graduate Assistant/Communications

STARKVILLE – No. 16 Mississippi State suffered its first setback of the 2020 campaign Saturday night as the Bulldogs dropped a 21-14 decision to the Arkansas Razorbacks at Davis Wade Stadium.

Quarterback K.J. Costello led the Bulldogs' (1-1) to a team single-game record 43 completions as State tallied 400 total yards. The Bulldogs held Arkansas (1-1) to just 275 yards.

"It really didn't feel like it was Arkansas as much as [us]," head coach Mike Leach said. "I want to give them all the credit in the world, and they deserve the credit. I thought they played harder than we did, and I also thought they played one play after the next a little better than we did. I think some of our inconsistency was revealed, but Arkansas gets credit for the win for sure. A lot of our wounds were self-inflicted. One after the next, we had self-inflicted wounds."

The Razorbacks drew first blood on State's opening drive as Greg Brooks Jr. intercepted Costello's pass at the Arkansas 31-yard line and returned it 69 yards for the first score of the game.

Mississippi State responded with a 15-play and 7:45 drive that culminated with a 17-yard strike to JaVonta Payton to knot the score at 7-7. The drive marked the Bulldogs' longest scoring drive of the season in terms of both plays and time.

A toss from Feleipe Franks to DeVion Warren gave Arkansas a one score advantage at halftime. The Razorbacks maintained the momentum out of the locker room. Franks found Hudson Henry in the endzone from 12 yards out to go up 21-7.

Dillon Johnson capped off a 76-yard drive as he hauled himself into the endzone to bring the Bulldogs within one touchdown, but the Arkansas defense forced turnovers on downs in the red zone twice to hold on for the victory.

Next Up for MSU…

State goes back on the road next Saturday, Oct. 10, travelling to meet Kentucky (0-2) at Kroger Field in Lexington, Kentucky. Kickoff is slated for 6:30 p.m. CT, and the contest will be televised by the SEC Network.

For more information on the Bulldogs, follow MSU football on its social media platforms by searching for "HailStateFB" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Quotable…

"We have a lot of younger guys. We also have older guys like me and Kobe [Jones] that are going to play for each other and fight until the end. Even though we did lose, this is a learning experience with a young group. I also feel like we have a good group of guys who will go to battle for each other anytime." – Erroll Thompson

Notables From Tonight's Game…

Another Week, Another School Record For Costello

After breaking the MSU single game completion record on Sept. 26 in the 2020 season opener at LSU, K.J. Costello returned in week 2 and completed a school-record 43 passes against the Razorbacks.

He completed every pass he threw in the third quarter, setting a new program record with 12 consecutive completions.

30 Or More Pass Completions

Costello's 43 completions on 59 attempts marks the first time since at least 2006 that MSU completed 30 or more passes in consecutive games. In the season opener at LSU, the graduate transfer completed 36 passes on 60 attempts.

The 2015 season marked the only time in that span that State posted multiple games with 30 or more completions in a season, coming against LSU on Sept. 12 (34-of-4), Louisiana Tech on Oct. 17 (30-of-43) and at Arkansas on Nov. 21 (38-of-51).

Freshmen Offensive Production

Freshmen Jo'quavious Marks, Dillon Johnson and Jaden Walley combined for 217 yards of total offense (141 receiving and 76 rushing), which was 54.3 percent of State's 400 yards.

State's Takeaway Run Continues

Marquiss Spencer forced a fumble in the second quarter that was recovered by Londyn Craft. Aaron Brule later recovered a fumble at the Arkansas 21-yard line in the fourth quarter. The two takeaways mark the ninth multi-turnover game over a 15-game span since the start of the 2019 season.

MSU has collected at least one takeaway in 28 of their last 31 games dating back to the 2017 season at Arkansas on Nov. 18. State has compiled 55 takeaways over the 31-game stretch.

Dillon Johnson Leads Offensive Attack

The freshman running back led the Bulldogs with 10 catches totaling 50 yards, and added nine carries for 39 yards after having just one touch in his debut at LSU on Sept. 26. Johnson scampered into the endzone for State's final score of the game and his first career rushing touchdown in the third quarter.

Bulldogs Win The Possession Battle

State's offense spent more than 10 minutes longer on the field than Arkansas' as Mississippi State controlled the ball for 36:20, while the Razorbacks kept it for 23:40.

Rush Defense Steps Up

The Bulldogs defense limited the Razorbacks to 63 yards on the ground, and only 1.7 yards per carry. Last week, State held LSU to just 89 yards on the ground. Since the start of 2018, MSU has allowed 200 or more rushing yards just three times.

Erroll Thompson Paces Defense

Thompson led the Mississippi State defense with 13 tackles, ignited by six solo stops. The 13-tackle performance marks the senior's second-straight 10-tackle game, after he tallied 10 stops at LSU on Sept. 26. Thompson now has seven career games with double-digit tackles.