A Bye Week, But The Work Continues
October 07, 2021 | Football, Joel Coleman
Bulldogs continue to seek improvement as a weekend off awaits.
STARKVILLE – The schedule clearly indicates this is a bye week for Mississippi State. On Saturday, there'll be football games around the country, but the Bulldogs can sit back and breathe.
Don't be fooled, however. It's an off week, but MSU isn't exactly taking a week off.
State was back on the practice fields getting better on Thursday. It was the first of two practices this week and head coach Mike Leach oversaw a spirited session, surely fueled by what happened the last time the Bulldogs were on a football field when they defeated then-No. 15 Texas A&M last weekend.
"Yeah, they're all cranked up," Leach said of his guys' attitude on Thursday.
The win over the Aggies illustrated just how vital constant improvement is. Game by game, these 2021 Bulldogs have illustrated progress. Even in a week where there's no game to prepare for, MSU is committed to maintaining that momentum, on and off the field.
Leach and staff spent the first half of this week on the recruiting trail, laying the foundation for the future. Then Thursday, it was back to work with the group currently wearing Maroon and White.
Mississippi State's sights are set on making the final seven games of this season a continuation of the success found in game No. 5. Only three wins away from bowl eligibility and hungry for more than that, there is plenty of motivation to keep the foot on the gas. Chief among those reasons, the Bulldogs know for all their growth, they still haven't reached their full potential.
"It's a team that's got to get better," Leach said. "Each game reveals little things you can improve on. You just try and get better. If there is something glaring, then you have to aggressively address it."
So there State was on Thursday trying to get one step closer to its peak. What the bye week does afford MSU was the chance to do things a little differently than it normally would.
The Bulldogs are spending this week's two workouts on fundamentals. They're also giving plenty of reps to younger players to both develop them, as well as give the State regulars a little bit of a break.
"The biggest thing is that you want your troops to be as fresh as they can be [for the rest of the season]," Leach said.
As for Leach himself, he insists he's not getting to take much of a timeout for himself this week. He's still hard at work finding ways to better his squad, but he does at least get a little more time to do it.
"You watch the same amount of film, but you don't have to cram it as much," Leach said. "You're able to do it gradually.
"I can spread it out over more days instead of just slamming it all into two days. It's still every day."
Leach will watch that film knowing what awaits the Bulldogs coming out of the open date. MSU hosts the nation's current No. 1 team, Alabama, on Oct. 16 at Davis Wade Stadium.
State will practice once more this week on Friday, then take Saturday off. Then come Sunday, it's all eyes on the Crimson Tide.
Leach already knows what he expects from his team against their talented Southeastern Conference neighbors from the state next door.
"The biggest thing is just do your job," Leach said. "Don't listen to any of the noise or the hype. You have to worry about what you can control and that's your job and how you execute together. If you have the discipline to do that, then you give yourself the best opportunity."
That's next week. This week – yes – there's a little more laid-back feel, but the goal is still to get better. And if Leach is lucky, maybe, just maybe…
"Maybe you get a little more sleep [on a bye week], I don't know," Leach said.
