Enough To Go Around
September 04, 2022 | Football, Joel Coleman
Bulldogs show off receiver depth in season-opening win.
STARKVILLE – About six minutes were left on the clock in Mississippi State's season opener against Memphis Saturday night when the Bulldogs snapped the football from the Tiger 33-yard line and receiver Rufus Harvey sprinted straight up the field.
MSU quarterback Will Rogers saw opportunity knocking and took it. One perfectly-placed Rogers pass later, and Harvey had the football in his hands as he crossed the goal line. Touchdown State.
Big plays from Harvey and the Bulldog pass catchers were a common occurrence as MSU rolled to a 49-23 win over the Tigers.
There was the 23-yard reception from Rara Thomas on the game's opening drive that set the tone. There was the nine-yard catch from Jaden Walley later in the first quarter that helped State stretch the lead.
Caleb Ducking hauled in a beautiful 35-yard throw from Rogers for a score. Justin Robinson put the exclamation point on the night with a 23-yard touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter – the Georgia transfer's first reception and touchdown with his new set of Bulldogs.
All told for the evening – a total of 12 different Mississippi State players caught passes. Of that dozen, seven of them racked up 30 yards or more receiving. Four of those eclipsed the 60-yard mark.
It's only one game, but if it was any indication, the 2022 version of MSU head coach Mike Leach's Air Raid offense sure looks like an attack that has weapons all over the place.
"I thought they competed and they did some good things," Leach said of his receivers. "I thought they took a step…We did some good stuff. Rara hadn't played a lot [before Saturday night's performance]. Rufus hadn't played a lot. Ducking hadn't played a lot. It was good to see Antonio Harmon get a big catch. Also Justin Robinson. I think it was good to spread it out."
It was good, indeed – individually as well as collectively.
Ducking set a new high for his longest career reception with a 33-yard catch, then broke that mark later with his long touchdown grab. Ducking ended the night with a new single-game career high in receiving yardage.
Lideatrick Griffin tied his single-game career high with five receptions. He totaled 60 yards. Meanwhile, Harvey set career bests in both catches and yards.
Harmon and running back Simeon Price nabbed their first career receptions – surely a sign of even greater things to come for those two.
As a team, State grabbed 10 different passes that gained 15 yards or more.
The bottom line with all this production is it displays how, in the Air Raid, it's no one-man show. It's a top-to-bottom team effort where anyone – or everyone – can contribute.
"They were terrific," Rogers said of his receivers' efforts on Saturday. "They did an outstanding job. I don't think one guy played better than anybody else. I think we played good as a group – inside and outside receivers. There are obviously some throws I'd like back and I should have put it on them for more yards after the catch and things like that, but they did a great job."
Rogers did throw in one caveat to his praise.
"As a group and as a team, we still have a lot of work to do," he said. "We're not anywhere close to where we need to be yet."
Much like his head coach, Rogers is never satisfied. That even includes nights like Saturday when much of everything seemingly went right, particularly when it came to receiver play.
It's really how Mississippi State got in this fortunate situation of having so many good receiving options to begin with. These Bulldogs all appear to be wired to improve. It's evident already that the Harveys and Duckings and Griffins of the world have all done just that leading into a new campaign, giving Mississippi State one of the deepest receiving units in the Southeastern Conference.
Through Saturday's contests that have featured SEC teams this season, only Mississippi State can claim a game in which at least 12 players caught a pass. As impressive as that may be, perhaps the best news of all is that games like Saturday's might only serve to make MSU better for its upcoming schedule.
"It was good to get as many of these guys in stride as we can," Leach said of his receivers. "They're competing for playing time, so it kind of raised the stakes on things, so that was good."
Players Mentioned
