Beating the Bulldogs: Preview of Arkansas vs. Mississippi State

Introduction

We’re beautifully close to football season, and even though last year was the worst year of all time, there’s actually some reason to be hopeful. For that reason, we’re breaking down each game we’ll play this year, and exploring a little bit about each opponent. Ultimately, we’ll make some levels of predictions about our chances, for better or for worse. Be sure to follow us on Twitter @ArkansasFight to keep up with all the latest posts, and don’t forget to sign up to be a pollster for our site!

Week 9- November 2, 2019

Opponent:

Mississippi State

Where:

Surrounded by insane energy of Razorbacks past, present, and future. Follow the Hog calls to Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium at a time to be determined.

Their Coach:

After nine years with Dan Mullen and realizing that Dak Prescott is as great as it’s going to get over there, Mississippi State hired Joe Moorhead. Coach Moorhead is entering his second year as the head coach of the Bulldogs. He had an 8-5 and 4–4 in SEC play season, coming in 4th place in the western division. So… no medal. All in all, both the Razorbacks and the Bulldogs want to prove themselves this year, but it looks like we have a strong chance of being the team with the winning second-year coach.

Our Record Against Them:

Arkansas is 16-12-1 against Mississippi State, so at least we’re winning in the long haul. The most recent Razorback wins are a beautiful 3-year winning streak in 2009-2011, and then again in 2016. Last year’s game was… not fun. The 2018 Mississippi State Bulldogs got their late revenge on the 2003 Razorbacks by winning the game, 52-6. However, as we all know, last season was a prank, and THIS will be our year.

Key Players:

Tommy Stevens: Stevens is a transfer QB from Penn State. He has played for Coach Moorhead before in 2016-2018. He is in his senior year, so he should be comfortable on the field. He has been quoted saying that this training camp has been his best yet. Right now, the verdict is still out on who Mississippi State will choose as their starting quarterback, but Tommy Stevens seems to be making a lot of noise.

A Very Short Recap of Their Last Season:

As I mentioned earlier, the Bulldogs had an 8-5 season and 4–4 in SEC play. Most of their losses were by a fairly large margin, except for the bowl game. They made it to the Outback Bowl in Tampa, Florida. The Bulldogs lost 22-27 to the Iowa Hawkeyes.

How We Feel About Our Chances:

I am almost cripplingly optimistic. It’s the homecoming game, everyone is excited, Coach Morris wants this win, fans want this win, the team wants this win, I want this win! I think we have a solid chance here, I really do. I think it’s safe to say Fayetteville does not need any more cowbell.

Thanks for checking out the first part of our series on Arkansas’ 2019 Football Season, be sure to sign up for our SB Nation poll, and follow @ArkansasFight on Twitter.