By Elijah Klepczyk
Emmerich Newspapers
Mississippi State delivered another strong offensive performance, rolling past Minnesota 38‑13 in Minneapolis over the weekend. The Bulldogs, led by budding star Kamario Taylor, totaled 479 yards of offense, putting them atop the SEC in total yardage so far this season.
“I am proud to be able to come on the road and get a huge win,” head coach Jeff Lebby said after the game. Road success has been hard to come by for Mississippi State during his tenure, but this marked the third road victory of Lebby’s career.
Defensively, the Bulldogs stifled the Golden Gophers, holding them to just 292 total yards and only 13 rushing yards. Lebby credited his defense for consistently getting off the field on third down, forcing Minnesota to finish just 3‑for‑14 in those situations.
State wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, marching 75 yards in just 1 minute and 48 seconds. The drive ended with a 22‑yard touchdown pass from Taylor to Zion Ragins, giving the Bulldogs an early 7‑0 lead.
The Golden Gophers responded with a 44-yard field goal, but MSU punched right back with a nine play, 75-yard drive that ended with a 5-yard rushing touchdown by Fluff Bothwell.
Up 14-3, the Bulldogs smelled blood in the water and scored on their following two possessions. Taylor hit Sanfrisco Magee for a 30‑yard score, then found Anthony Evans III from 15 yards out to stretch the margin to 28-3. Minnesota was able to kick a 41-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to bring the score to 28-6.
Lebby said the only part of the game that disappointed him was the third quarter, when Taylor was strip‑sacked in the end zone to give Minnesota its lone touchdown of the day. State answered with a 52‑yard field goal from Kyle Ferrie, pushing the lead to 31‑13 heading into the fourth quarter.
In the final quarter, Bothwell found paydirt again with a 3-yard rushing touchdown in the final five minutes of the game.
Taylor finished the game with 227 passing yards on 16-for-22 attempts with no interception, while also picking up 86-yards on the ground. Bothwell turned in his first big performance of the season, piling up 113 rushing yards on 18 carries and scoring twice. Evans III posted his second straight 100‑yard performance, finishing with 121 receiving yards and a touchdown.
State’s defense controlled the line of scrimmage, shutting down Minnesota’s run game and forcing Drake Lindsey to put the ball in the air 48 times during the Gophers’ push to get back into the game.
State will hit the road once again this Saturday, as they open up SEC play with South Carolina. The Gamecocks are entering the game 2-0 on the season and will be led by the talented LaNorris Sellers. Lebby said that they will have to do a “great job of getting him on the ground.”
“Clean football,” is what Lebby said he is looking for out of his team, as they will be away from home once again. He added that he is aware that Williams-Brice stadium can be a tough venue to play at, and pre-snap penalties will have to be at a minimum for the Bulldogs to find success.
The game will kickoff at 3:15 p.m. and be broadcast on SEC Network.
State will return home next week to host 20th ranked Missouri on Sept. 26. Kickoff is set for 6:45 p.m. and is set to be aired on SEC Network.
