Mississippi State
2-2 , 0-2
South Carolina
2-2 , 1-1
State Falls Short At South Carolina
September 23, 2023 | Football
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Mississippi State fell just short of victory in its first road test of the season with a 37-30 loss to South Carolina.
Even in defeat, MSU was able to notch a couple of notable offensive performances. Quarterback Will Rogers jumped to fourth place on the Southeastern Conference's list of all-time career passing yardage leaders early in the contest, finding Lideatrick Griffin for a 65-yard touchdown reception to put the Bulldogs on the scoreboard. The quarterback posted his most prolific game of the year so far, completing 30 of 48 passes for a career-high 487 yards and one touchdown.
Griffin had a career performance in Columbia as well, hauling in seven receptions for 256 yards and one touchdown. Of those yards, 205 came in the first half, and the wideout set a Mississippi State record for the most receiving yards in a single game with his 30-yard reception in the third quarter.
Jo'Quavious Marks added a touchdown of his own with a seven-yard rush midway through the second quarter, tying the game at 14 points apiece. Freshman kicker Kyle Ferrie tacked on a 49-yard field goal just before heading into the locker room at halftime.
Mississippi State struck again in the third quarter as Mike Wright punched it in from a yard out to record his first rushing touchdown of the season. Ferrie nailed his second field goal of the night on a 23-yard kick and later booted one through the uprights from 47 yards out.
Despite State's strong offensive showing, South Carolina was able to emerge with the win as the Gamecocks broke a 27-all tie by outscoring the Bulldogs 10-3 in the fourth quarter.
On the defensive side of the ball for MSU, Jett Johnson recorded a team-high 14 tackles, one sack and one tackle-for-loss. Shawn Preston Jr. forced a fumble, and Nathan Pickering powered into the backfield for two sacks and two tackles-for-loss.
Â
Up next for the Bulldogs:
Mississippi State will host Alabama at Davis Wade Stadium on Saturday at 8 p.m. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN.
Team Stats
MSU 0, USC 7
USC - Legette,Xavier 76 yd pass from Rattler,Spencer (Jeter,Mitch kick) 6 plays, 98 yards, TOP 02:18
MSU 0, USC 14
USC - Knox,Trey 17 yd pass from Rattler,Spencer (Jeter,Mitch kick) 16 plays, 99 yards, TOP 07:15
MSU 7, USC 14
MSU - Griffin,Lideatrick 65 yd pass from Rogers,Will (Ferrie,Kyle kick) 2 plays, 65 yards, TOP 00:14
MSU 14, USC 14
MSU - Marks,Jo'quavious 7 yd run (Ferrie,Kyle kick), 3 plays, 68 yards, TOP 01:05
MSU 14, USC 20
USC - Joyner,Dakereon 3 yd run (), 13 plays, 75 yards, TOP 06:24
MSU 17, USC 20
MSU - Ferrie,Kyle 49 yd field goal 6 plays, 44 yards, TOP 00:38
MSU 17, USC 27
USC - Legette,Xavier 75 yd pass from Rattler,Spencer (Jeter,Mitch kick) 1 plays, 75 yards, TOP 00:10
MSU 24, USC 27
MSU - Wright,Mike 1 yd run (Ferrie,Kyle kick), 9 plays, 75 yards, TOP 04:24
MSU 27, USC 27
MSU - Ferrie,Kyle 23 yd field goal 9 plays, 39 yards, TOP 05:12
MSU 27, USC 30
USC - Jeter,Mitch 35 yd field goal 10 plays, 58 yards, TOP 04:25
MSU 27, USC 37
USC - Anderson,Mario 9 yd run (Jeter,Mitch kick), 4 plays, 22 yards, TOP 01:43
MSU 30, USC 37
MSU - Ferrie,Kyle 47 yd field goal 13 plays, 68 yards, TOP 02:42
