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

STARKVILLE – A sold-out crowd is set. The Southeastern Conference opener for Mississippi State against one of the nation's best teams is here. It's the biggest game in Starkville in years.

MSU hosts No. 15 Tennessee at 3:15 p.m. CT on Saturday at Davis Wade Stadium in a game televised by SEC Network. The undefeated Bulldogs, who have already earned one victory over a top-15 foe this season, now shoot for another to further build upon consistently increasing program momentum.

Ahead of the contest, let's have a look at 10 items to be aware of as State readies for its much-anticipated showdown against the Volunteers:

Mississippi State, already off to its first 4-0 start since 2014, is now looking to begin the year 5-0. Headed into Saturday, MSU has only started 5-0 five times in program history.
There are multiple ties between the Mississippi State and Tennessee coaching staffs. In 2018 and 2019, MSU head coach Jeff Lebby served as both quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator for Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel when Heupel was the head man at UCF. During that same time period, Lebby worked alongside current Tennessee staff members Alec Abeln, Glen Elarbee, Joey Halzle and Willie Martinez. Current MSU running backs coach Anthony Tucker was at UCF coaching the same position under Heupel from 2018-20. Other connections include State tight ends coach Jon Cooper, who worked with Heupel as an offensive graduate assistant at Utah State in 2015, an offensive analyst at Missouri in 2016 and 2017, and as tight ends coach at UCF in 2018 and 2019. Also, MSU offensive line coach Phil Loadholt played at Oklahoma when Heupel was the Sooners quarterbacks coach. Loadholt later served as an offensive assistant for Heupel at UCF in 2018 and 2019. Marc Votteler, State's general manager, was on Heupel's UCF staff and also was a part of the Tennessee staff from 2014 through 2018.
Saturday is the 48th all-time meeting between State and Tennessee. However, it's only the fourth game between the two schools in the last 16 years and just the second contest in Starkville during that span. Tennessee last came to MSU in 2012. The Bulldogs won that ballgame 41-31.
Saturday's winner might be decided by who can get off to the quickest start. Both teams have made a habit of jumping on opponents in a hurry this season. State has outscored its opposition 55-6 in first quarters this year, while Tennessee has outscored foes 83-7 in the opening frame.
Fans better stay stuck to their seats or television screens on Saturday in order to make sure they don't miss anything. Both of these teams have a knack for creating big-time offensive highlights. State and Tennessee come into this weekend tied for second in the SEC for most plays of 50 or more yards. The Dawgs and Vols have five such plays apiece.
It's true for most any football game, but controlling the line of scrimmage might be more important than ever this Saturday. Tennessee's defense enters the game with 15 sacks this season, good for second in the SEC and tied for fifth in the nation. Meanwhile the Volunteers have only allowed two sacks, with one of those coming on an intentional grounding penalty. The two sacks allowed are tied for the fewest in the SEC.
State junior kicker Kyle Ferrie is nearing the top-10 list for most points scored in an MSU career. Ferrie enters Saturday's game with 174 career points scored and is only nine points shy of taking over 10th all by himself. He could also quickly get into the top eight, as he's only 13 points away from solo possession of that spot.
Bulldog quarterback Blake Shapen is looking to continue his incredible touchdown pass streak. Shapen has thrown for a score in 19 consecutive games in which he's played. It's the second-longest active streak in the country, behind only Iowa State's Rocco Becht, who has thrown for a touchdown in 22 straight contests.
Mississippi State's defense has taken tremendous strides forward this season compared to a year ago. Through the first four games of 2024, State allowed an average of 416.8 yards per game. This season though four contests, MSU's defense is giving up just 265.5 yards per contest – 151.3 yards less. Additionally, through four games last year, the Dawgs allowed an average of 30.8 points per game. This year through four matchups, State is allowing just 11.8 points per game.
Saturday is the start of MSU's eight-game SEC gauntlet. Counting Tennessee, six of State's eight league games will be against teams currently ranked in the top 20 of the Associated Press poll. Five of those squads are in the top 15 and three remaining opponents are in the top 10.

Mississippi State University Athletics

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

Players Mentioned

Kyle Ferrie

Blake Shapen

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