Mississippi State says it's ready for Tech's rush

By PAUL JONES

For the AJC

Starkville, Miss. — Last season in Atlanta, the Mississippi State defense watched Georgia Tech’s offense run wherever it wanted.

The Yellow Jackets’ triple-option offense gained 438 yards rushing on the way to a 38-7 win.

But that was last year, said this year’s group of Mississippi State defenders.

The plan for controlling Georgia Tech’s offense remains the same. But what the Bulldogs expect to change is their execution when the Jackets visit Davis Wade Stadium for Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. kickoff.

“All it really takes is a lot of guys up front and a lot of guys on the defense to be disciplined,” said senior defensive tackle Kyle Love, a Fairburn native.

“You have to know your keys and your responsibilities. Like [MSU defensive line] Coach [David] Turner always tells us -- ‘Play in your yard and don’t try to do anybody else’s job but do your own.’ I think we have that now whereas we didn’t have that last year. Now we have guys that do their jobs.”

In their 2-2 start, the Bulldogs’ defense has been uneven against the rush. In the SEC opener, MSU surrendered a whopping 390 yards rushing to Auburn. But this past weekend, the Bulldogs held LSU to only 30 yards.

“It’s going to be a great experience because I didn’t play against them last year,” said MSU senior linebacker Jamar Chaney, whose 24 tackles rank second on the team. “They put up 400 yards on us last year just in rushing yards. We gave up 390 yards rushing already to Auburn this year, but that is something that should never happen.”

Having missed the Tech game last year because of a broken leg in the opener, Chaney also plans to do some extra study on the Jackets’ backfield.

“I might call [former MSU linebacker] Dominic Douglas to see what their wishbone is like,” said Chaney, a Fort Pierce, Fla., native and former Georgia signee. “I know a lot of dudes, too, who play for the University of Miami, who just played them. I am going to call all of them to see what they did to slow them down.”

Georgia Tech’s personnel are familiar to the Bulldogs, but this year's Mississippi State team will look quite different to Tech.

After last year’s 4-8 season, former MSU head coach Sylvester Croom resigned, and former Florida offensive coordinator Dan Mullen took over the program.

Mullen wasted little time installing his spread offense, and the Bulldogs have done better at moving the ball down the field and into the end zone.

In 2008, MSU’s offense ranked near the bottom of Division 1, averaging just 15.2 points and 276 yards a game. Four games into this season, the Bulldogs are averaging 27.5 points and 355.5 yards of total offense.

And when it comes to slowing down the Jackets’ offense, the Bulldogs’ offense can also play a role.

“For our offense, we have to keep the ball on the field,” said MSU quarterback Tyson Lee. “We have to do our part, keep our defense off the field and limit their offensive snaps. We have to move the chains and keep the clock rolling.”

Lee started last year’s game, and the Bulldogs’ offense still centers on All-SEC senior tailback Anthony Dixon. Dixon scored two touchdowns against LSU to become the school’s all-time leading scorer.

A handful of other offensive weapons, however, will be new to the Jackets’ defense.

Leon Berry leads the Bulldogs with 131.8 all-purpose yards per outing. Berry, of Griffin, Ga., is a starting wide receiver who also returns kickoffs and punts, ranking sixth in the SEC in kickoff returns (25.6 yards per return).

Berry will be seeking weaknesses in the Jackets’ defense and coverage units -- and extra tickets for family members.

“I wish the game was in Georgia Tech, actually,” Berry said. “I would like to go back to Atlanta and play them but it’s also good we have them at home. It’s going to be a big deal for my family. All of them are from there and are coming over for the game.

“My mom asked me if I could get 15 tickets. I told her getting that many wasn’t gonna happen. So they are probably gonna all come and tailgate and then get tickets and come to the game.”