CFN Analysis..

LSU (3-0) at Mississippi State (2-1), 12:00 EST, Saturday, September 26, ESPN GamePlan

Why to watch: LSU has been quiet. Very quiet. It might seem strange for a program with two recent national championships to be flying under the radar, but LSU isn’t being talked about when it comes to possible BCS title contenders. That’s partially because the team has been underwhelming, there isn’t the dominant defense of past seasons and the offense isn’t particularly special, but the results have been solid. Beating Washington in the season opener wasn’t seen as any big deal, but now, winning in Seattle is looked at in a whole new way after what the Huskies did against USC. Dominant blowouts over Vanderbilt and UL Lafayette also aren’t going to bring too much notoriety, and beating Mississippi State won’t, either. The Bulldogs aren’t supposed to make too much noise in the SEC West, but Dan Mullen has helped make the team more competitive with a strong running game and a tremendous pass defense. With two SEC road games under its belt, losing to Auburn and beating Vanderbilt, MSU gets a nice run of four home games in five weeks starting with LSU. A win over the Tigers would jumpstart the program under Mullen and create a buzz around Starkville.

Why LSU might win: Mississippi State doesn’t have enough scoring punch. LSU’s defense might not be the killer you’d expect, but it has done a great job against middling offense holding Vanderbilt to just nine points and Louisiana-Lafayette to three. The Bulldogs need to come up with a few key turnovers to help out their mediocre offense, but LSU doesn’t give the ball away with just three turnovers in the first three games, to go along with six takeaways. If LSU is stingy with the ball and doesn’t take a slew of big risks, it should be fine if it gets up early.

Why Mississippi State might win: LSU’s offense isn’t exactly rocking and rolling. It’s doing what it needs to do to get by, and it has been efficient, but it hasn’t been dominant. The offensive line isn’t playing up to its talent and its potential, and the running game is suffering having not rushed for 200 yards per game yet. MSU was gouged by Auburn, but the defensive front seven is just good enough to hold its own against the LSU ground game that’s not exploding, and there isn’t a passing game to pick up the slack. LSU has an almost perfect balance on offense, but it’s only averaging 162 passing yards to go along with 164 yards on the ground.

Who to watch: The Bulldogs will go with a two quarterback system to try to find the hot hand, and to provide different looks. Chris Relf ran well, rushing for 44 yards on nine carries, and while he’s the future, he’s not the passer and he doesn’t have the veteran experience of Tyson Lee. Lee hasn’t been consistent over the course of his career, and he has had a tough time putting points on the board, but he came up a touchdown run against Vanderbilt and completed 8-of-12 passes for 66 yards without any mistakes. To beat LSU, there will have to be more downfield passing from both Lee and Relf, but that’s not their game. If MSU is one-dimensional, like it has been from the start, LSU will come up with another easy win. What will happen: Mississippi State won’t be able to throw the ball and LSU will come up with another easy win, but the points aren’t going to be flying off the board. There will be a few chances for the Bulldogs to take over the momentum of the game, and they won’t be able to capitalize.


CFN Prediction: LSU 23 … Mississippi State 12 ... Line: LSU -13Must See Rating: (I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell 5 … Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself 1) … 3