Photo by: Austin Perryman/MSU Athletics
Defense Dominant In Win Over No. 12 Kentucky
October 30, 2021 | Football
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State's defense has certainly made a statement in the past two weeks.
In their last eight quarters of football, the Bulldogs' defense has surrendered just a single touchdown. MSU held Vanderbilt out of the end zone and allowed only five first downs last week and followed up that performance by limiting No. 12 Kentucky to only 216 total yards and forcing four turnovers.
"It's a big confidence boost knowing that we're playing our best defense in the middle and towards the end of the season," said cornerback Emmanuel Forbes. "Hopefully we can keep that going."
The Wildcats rolled into Starkville with the Southeastern Conference's top rusher Chris Rodriguez Jr. Rodriguez was averaging 110.7 yards per game entering his encounter with State but was held to just 34 yards on the ground.
UK finished with 66 yards rushing, marking the fifth time this season that Zach Arnett's defense has held an opponent under the century mark on the ground.
"We just played with an edge," Forbes said. "We knew what we had to come out and do. We had to stop the run and make them do something they don't like to do, which is throw the ball."
Kentucky managed just 150 yards in the air and threw three interceptions as well. Shawn Preston Jr. picked off Will Levis on the opening drive of the game and Jalen Green later thwarted the Wildcats' quest for points with a diving interception at the 1-yard line with nine seconds remaining to preserve a 14-10 halftime lead.
Mississippi State added a field goal in the first drive of the second half and then continued to expand its lead by capitalizing on a pair of takeaways. Linebacker Jett Johnson jumped on a Rodriguez fumble at the UK 22-yard line that setup another Bulldog touchdown three plays later.
MSU's defense got their hands on the ball on the Wildcats' next offensive play as well. Tyrus Wheat tipped Levis' pass into the air allowing defensive tackle Cameron Young to catch it for his first career interception at the UK 24-yard line.
Again, it only took the Bulldogs three plays to capitalize as Will Rogers connected with Rara Thomas for a 25-yard touchdown to take a 31-10 lead.
"Those turnovers were very crucial," Johnson said. "Anytime you can create a turnover and then our offense scores, that's a huge momentum shift. Hopefully we as a defensive unit can keep that going."
Johnson made nine tackles on the night, marking the third time he has led the team in that category this season. It was also the lowest offensive output the Wildcats have had this year.
"Our defense was real active up front," said head coach Mike Leach. "We felt like it was really important to affect the line of scrimmage on defense because you've got to wreck the running lanes and make them bubble instead of running straight ahead. We wanted to affect the quarterback and I thought the defensive linemen did both of those things."
The secondary was shorthanded but responded remarkably well. The Bulldogs were without the services of starting safety Fred Peters and also lost All-American cornerback Martin Emerson to targeting on the third play of the game.
Preston started in Peters' place and picked off his first career pass while Decamerion Richardson came on to replace Emerson and gave a solid performance.
"We've got trust in our twos," Forbes said. "They had to fill some big shoes to fill and they played a big part in the win."
In their last eight quarters of football, the Bulldogs' defense has surrendered just a single touchdown. MSU held Vanderbilt out of the end zone and allowed only five first downs last week and followed up that performance by limiting No. 12 Kentucky to only 216 total yards and forcing four turnovers.
"It's a big confidence boost knowing that we're playing our best defense in the middle and towards the end of the season," said cornerback Emmanuel Forbes. "Hopefully we can keep that going."
The Wildcats rolled into Starkville with the Southeastern Conference's top rusher Chris Rodriguez Jr. Rodriguez was averaging 110.7 yards per game entering his encounter with State but was held to just 34 yards on the ground.
UK finished with 66 yards rushing, marking the fifth time this season that Zach Arnett's defense has held an opponent under the century mark on the ground.
"We just played with an edge," Forbes said. "We knew what we had to come out and do. We had to stop the run and make them do something they don't like to do, which is throw the ball."
Kentucky managed just 150 yards in the air and threw three interceptions as well. Shawn Preston Jr. picked off Will Levis on the opening drive of the game and Jalen Green later thwarted the Wildcats' quest for points with a diving interception at the 1-yard line with nine seconds remaining to preserve a 14-10 halftime lead.
Mississippi State added a field goal in the first drive of the second half and then continued to expand its lead by capitalizing on a pair of takeaways. Linebacker Jett Johnson jumped on a Rodriguez fumble at the UK 22-yard line that setup another Bulldog touchdown three plays later.
MSU's defense got their hands on the ball on the Wildcats' next offensive play as well. Tyrus Wheat tipped Levis' pass into the air allowing defensive tackle Cameron Young to catch it for his first career interception at the UK 24-yard line.
Again, it only took the Bulldogs three plays to capitalize as Will Rogers connected with Rara Thomas for a 25-yard touchdown to take a 31-10 lead.
"Those turnovers were very crucial," Johnson said. "Anytime you can create a turnover and then our offense scores, that's a huge momentum shift. Hopefully we as a defensive unit can keep that going."
Johnson made nine tackles on the night, marking the third time he has led the team in that category this season. It was also the lowest offensive output the Wildcats have had this year.
"Our defense was real active up front," said head coach Mike Leach. "We felt like it was really important to affect the line of scrimmage on defense because you've got to wreck the running lanes and make them bubble instead of running straight ahead. We wanted to affect the quarterback and I thought the defensive linemen did both of those things."
The secondary was shorthanded but responded remarkably well. The Bulldogs were without the services of starting safety Fred Peters and also lost All-American cornerback Martin Emerson to targeting on the third play of the game.
Preston started in Peters' place and picked off his first career pass while Decamerion Richardson came on to replace Emerson and gave a solid performance.
"We've got trust in our twos," Forbes said. "They had to fill some big shoes to fill and they played a big part in the win."
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