First-And-10 To Know: State vs. Tennessee

STARKVILLE – The Bulldogs are back on the road and once again, a Top-10 foe awaits.

Mississippi State takes on No. 7 Tennessee at 6 p.m. CT Saturday. It's a tough test to say the least as MSU seeks a Southeastern Conference win on Rocky Top.

That much you probably know. But there are a few things you might not.

So, let's have a look at 10 items to be aware of headed into State's showdown against the Volunteers:

Mississippi State's trip to Tennessee will be the Bulldogs' first to Knoxville since the 2019 season. It marks the second straight game in this series' all-time history that MSU has faced the Vols on the road. In fact, Saturday's game will be the 22nd time State and Tennessee have squared off on Rocky Top. Meanwhile, the Vols have visited Starkville just 10 times. The two teams played in Memphis on multiple occasions from 1907 through 1979.
While Tennessee holds the edge in the all-time series, the two squads have split their last two meetings. The Vols won 20-10 when State visited back in 2019. Seven years prior, in Tennessee's last visit to Starkville, it was the Bulldogs earning a 10-point win when they downed the Vols 41-31.
Connections abound between the Mississippi State and Tennessee coaching staffs, starting right at the top. MSU head coach Jeff Lebby and Vols head coach Josh Heupel worked together at UCF from 2018-19. With Heupel as the UCF head coach, Lebby served as quarterbacks coach in 2018 and then was the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator in 2019. The two men's history goes back even longer though, as Lebby was a student assistant at Oklahoma during the 2003 and 2004 seasons when Heupel was a graduate assistant.
Other staff ties include MSU running backs coach Anthony Tucker, who served in the same role under Heupel at UCF from 2018-20. State tight ends coach Jon Cooper also worked with Heupel at Utah State, Missouri and at UCF. Meanwhile, Lebby, when at UCF, also worked with several other members of the current Tennessee staff including tight ends coach Alec Abeln, offensive line coach Glen Elarbee, offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Joey Halzle and secondary coach Willie Martinez.
State's battle against Tennessee is MSU's third Top-10 opponent of the season. All three of these matchups have been road games for the Bulldogs. MSU more than held its own in its first two games against Top-10 competition. State trailed by only eight late in the third quarter at then-No. 1 Texas, then a couple weeks later, went to Georgia and became the first opponent in eight years to score more than 30 points between the hedges.
True freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. led that offensive surge at Georgia as part of what was a tremendous October for the youngster. Van Buren led all SEC quarterbacks in touchdown passes for the month with eight. Then, kicking off November last week against UMass, Van Buren continued his stellar first year in Maroon and White by not only passing for a score, but also running for two touchdowns.
Speaking of the rushing attack, it has been getting better by the week for the Bulldogs and last week's game against UMass displayed that, as well as how many weapons State boasts in its backfield. MSU totaled 241 rushing yards against the Minutemen, and four different Bulldogs had at least one rushing touchdown. Those included Van Buren, as well as running backs Davon Booth, Johnnie Daniels and Xavier Gayten.
On the defensive side, State boasts the SEC's top two tacklers. Linebacker Stone Blanton is atop the league leaders with 84 stops. Meanwhile, safety Isaac Smith isn't too far behind with his 81 takedowns. It's really more of the same for the Bulldogs, who ended the 2022 and 2023 seasons with the conference's top two tacklers.
A strong performance out of Blanton, Smith and the rest of the MSU defense would go a long way towards helping the Dawgs find success at Tennessee, and it'd be especially helpful if State can tap into its ability to create turnovers. MSU has earned a takeaway in eight of its nine games this year, including seven in a row. The Bulldogs have notched an interception in four straight contests.
Following Saturday's game, Mississippi State gets one more breather before the regular season's final couple of contests. The Bulldogs have an off weekend, then MSU hosts Missouri on Nov. 23 ahead of the annual Battle for the Golden Egg against instate rival Ole Miss on Nov. 29.

Mississippi State University Athletics

First-And-10 To Know: State vs. Tennessee

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Players Mentioned

Stone Blanton

Davon Booth

Johnnie Daniels

Xavier Gayten

Isaac Smith

Michael Van Buren Jr.

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