Texas A&M Football: Mississippi State game has major implications

If you’re a Texas A&M football fan, I don’t think you have much to worry about when it comes to the Mississippi State game. Yes, this is an important game with major implications, but the Aggies should be able to take care of business with relative ease. Here’s why.

Last season, these two teams clashed in what looked like it should be a great contest. Unfortunately for Mike Leach and his air-raid offense, the Aggie defense had other plans. Mississippi State managed just 217 total yards, which translated to 14 points on the scoreboard for the Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs played two quarterbacks, neither of which passed for over 120 yards. On the ground, MSU was even worse, rushing for a grand total of… -2 yards.

Mississippi State’s passing attack has improved significantly from a season ago, making a 67-yard jump from a season ago thus far.

Actually, I’ll be more specific — the Mississippi State football team has the second-worst rushing offense in the entire country. With just 62.8 yards per game, the only worse team in college football is Bowling Green. This regressing rushing attack could result in another brutal day on the ground for Mike Leach’s squad.

Despite major advantages in favor of the Texas A&M football team, this is a huge game for Jimbo Fisher’s squad

Even though Mississippi State is seemingly unmatched, this is a game that is considered a toss-up by a handful of college football experts. Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller has the Aggies losing in a 21-16 contest with the following as part of his reasoning.

"Texas A&M’s offense is hard to watch. Even with Isaiah Spiller breaking loose for a 67-yard touchdown run, the Aggies managed just 272 yards of total offense in a 20-10 loss to Arkansas. That poor showing came just two weeks after a 10-7 win over Colorado in which they didn’t score a touchdown until late in the fourth quarter."

After a brutal loss for Texas A&M to the Arkansas Razorbacks last week, it’s easy to jump on the anti-Aggie bandwagon and start claiming that A&M will lose to any SEC opponent. Let’s get one thing clear — this is still a team with an elite defense coming up against one of the SEC’s worst teams over the past couple of years.

This game could be an ugly one. Texas A&M has every defensive advantage over Mississippi State’s defense, while their offense has shown little-to-no signs of life. Don’t be surprised if this turns into another Colorado-type game, where A&M wins by a tiny scoring margin and every possession matters.

Don’t get it twisted — this is the Aggies’ most important game of the season. If they can’t manage to beat Mississippi State, it might be time to pack it up and get ready for the 2022-23 season. Still, there’s no reason to believe that Texas A&M will lose this game. It might be close, but the intelligent pick is to take A&M in this one.

If the Aggies win, it’s survive and advance for the rest of the season.