Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Jeff Lebby faces an immense challenge when the Bulldogs travel to Athens, Georgia, this Saturday to play the No. 4 Georgia Bulldogs. Mississippi State is just 1-4 this season including an ugly 41-17 home loss to Toledo. The Bulldogs are massive underdogs against Georgia.
Mississippi State is coming off its bye week, which should help the Bulldogs against Georgia.
“I thought it was important for our guys to get away a little bit… reset, refocus, regroup and get ready for this back half of the season,” said Lebby after Mississippi State’s bye week.
Mississippi State is motivated to play one of the top teams in the country. Georgia has not lost at home since 2019. “We’ve got an incredible challenge on Saturday, but our guys are excited about it,” said Lebby.
So what will it take for Mississippi State to pull off the upset?
“We’re going to have to do a great job of taking care of the football and taking advantage of some opportunities. If we can move the football, we have to score touchdowns and not kick field goals,” explained Lebby.
Winning the turnover margin and red zone battle is certainly a way to pull off an upset, but it is easier said than done against this Georgia team. Mississippi State will have to try to win on the road without their starting quarterback.
Mississippi State freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren will make his second career start against Georgia.
“It is a huge opportunity for him…to have this great amount of growth after getting his first start,” said Lebby on Van Buren, who made his first career start at Texas. Last week showed that a major SEC upset is possible on any given Saturday.