Rising To The Occasion
October 01, 2022 | Football, Joel Coleman
Bulldogs come through time and time again against the Aggies.
STARKVILLE – In the long history of Davis Wade Stadium, there've been too many unforgettable moments to count.
Add another to the list.
It was late in the third quarter on Saturday and Mississippi State held a 14-3 lead over No. 17 Texas A&M. The Aggies set up for a 44-yard field goal that would've made it a one-score game.
Key word: would've.
You probably know by now what happened next. If you weren't at the game, you at least felt the ground shake beneath your feet when Emmanuel Forbes blocked the kick and Decamerion Richardson picked it up before returning it 50 yards for a touchdown.
With every Richardson stride, Starkville got louder and louder and LOUDER. If there'd been a roof on the stadium, pieces of it would be all around Oktibbeha County after it popped off.
When Richardson crossed the goal line, it was a 10-point swing. Instead of the Aggies being within eight, State was up 18 and on the way to a 42-24 victory.
Chalk it up as another play that'll live on MSU highlight reels forever. And register it as another indicator these 2022 Bulldogs have what it takes to rise to the occasion in the tough moments.
It's something they did time and time again to top the Aggies.
Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach preaches toughness. He emphasizes it. On Saturday, the play of his Bulldogs proved they're all giving him a hearty, 'Amen.'
"We've got a highly-motivated group that wants to do well," Leach said. "They can sometimes press a little bit because they're very eager to do things well, so sometimes it's important to stay composed and just have the patience to do your job over and over again until things come your way. So, I think we've gotten better at that."
Sure have.
Saturday, the Bulldogs had multiple opportunities for the moment to get too big. Even with a lead for most of the contest, Texas A&M – especially over the first three quarters – often was on the cusp of finding momentum. State slammed the door in the Aggies' face basically every single time.
MSU went up 14-0 just before halftime. Texas A&M looked to answer and got to the State 15-yard line with just seconds left in the second quarter. Nathaniel Watson was having none of it.
The Bulldog linebacker came through with a sack that forced a fumble recovered by Tyrus Wheat. The Dawg defense delivered and kept the Aggies off the scoreboard.
"I thought that was huge," Leach said. "Scores right before half always seem to have a bigger impact than they really should…It's funny. Those things can have an impact either direction."
It certainly led to more big Bulldog plays in all phases over the final 30 minutes.
You had the aforementioned Forbes field goal block.
"He's come close [on blocking] a lot of them, we just hadn't seen him get them," Leach said. "I thought [Richardson] did a good job with the ball in front of him. Some guys will sit there and stumble around and put their hands on it while the ball is on the ground. He waited for that second jump [to get the ball and go score]. The other thing Forbes did a nice job of was after blocking it, he went down and got several blocks and got in the way of a number of people trying to get to [Richardson]."
It was nonstop effort from Forbes. It was incredibly Leach-esque. Don't let up until the job is done.
Forbes kept the pedal to the metal. Twice over Saturday's final seven minutes, Forbes had an interception. One was a 33-yard pick-six that served as the exclamation point for the MSU win.
The State offense got the Davis Wade cowbells clanging plenty over the course of the day, too.
Will Rogers threw for 329 yards, 75 of which came on a career-long pass to Rara Thomas for a touchdown. The play was also a career-long catch for Thomas.
Dillon Johnson, Jo'quavious Marks and Simeon Price combined for 144 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
All of it was sparked by a strong offensive line showing.
"We didn't get rattled and if something didn't go perfect, we'd regroup and play the next one, which I thought was pretty important," Leach said of his offensive front.
Leach might as well have been speaking about his team as a whole.
These Bulldogs are all-out effort, all the time. They're resilient. They're tough. A lot of teams talk about those things. MSU showed on Saturday, for this team, it's more than just talk.
"I think after the LSU game, it lit a fire in this group," Rogers said. "We've practiced way better. We've practiced way faster. I think that's translated over to Saturdays."
Sure sounds like Mississippi State is a squad that isn't done coming through when it counts and adding to the pile of unforgettable Bulldog moments in the weeks ahead.
