State-Journal.com - Don't expect runaway win when Kentucky, Mississippi State meet

LEXINGTON – The Kentucky Wildcats and Mississippi State Bulldogs are once again at a crossroads as they prepare to clash in a huge college football game Saturday night at 7 here at Commonwealth Stadium (on Fox South, Frankfort Plant Board Channel 37).

The Wildcats come in 4-3 overall and 1-3 in the Southeastern Conference and can solidify very realistic hopes for a fourth straight bowl berth with a win, while Mississippi State is 3-5 and 1-3 and needs this win to keep alive very slim bowl hopes.

“I think when you’re in the lower half of the league historically, to get to the upper half, you not only have to knock off some of the big boys up there, but you also have to beat the guys that are like you, and Mississippi State and Kentucky have been like each other for quite awhile,” UK coach Rich Brooks said at his weekly press conference on Monday, speaking candidly as he nearly always does.

“The team that wins has an edge on being able to climb that ladder a little bit. And it’s difficult to do. You look at your schedule (before the season), and you look at whether you’re favored or not favored, and you kind of look and say, ‘Well, maybe they can beat this team and that team, but they HAVE to beat this team.’

“Well, guess what?” added Brooks. “They are looking at you the same way – we HAVE to beat them.”

It should also be no surprise that Mississippi State and Kentucky nearly always play close games. Last season’s 14-13 Kentucky win in Starkville mirrored the kind of game these two teams usually play.

Neither the Bulldogs nor Wildcats have shown much of a passing attack. Both teams run the ball very well and generally play tough, physical defense.

Brutal schedules
Both, also, have played a very difficult schedule in 2009. UK, of course, went 1-3 over the brutal four-week SEC stretch of Florida, Alabama, South Carolina and Auburn. Mississippi State’s five losses have been to Auburn, LSU, Georgia Tech, Houston and last week, 29-19, against Florida.

The Bulldogs’ effort against Florida is the game that jumps out at you and leads me to maybe call MSU a slight favorite against Kentucky. Mississippi State played the socks off a Gators’ bunch that gave UK its worst loss of the season. Only one terrible call against the Bulldogs by the SEC officials cut short State’s hopes for an upset.

“I am very impressed with how they are playing defense,” Brooks said of the Bulldogs, referring primarily to their containment of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow. “The fact that they were able to put so much pressure on Tebow, something we weren’t able to do (with one notable exception) very well. They sacked him on numerous occasions and intercepted him twice for touchdowns.

“Offensively they weren’t as productive against Florida’s defense, as most people aren’t, but they were able to move the ball and do some good things,” Brooks added. “Certainly they’ve had some outstanding games on offense this year.

“So this is a very good football team coming in here. We’re going to have our hands full.”

Running back Anthony Dixon leads the Mississippi State offense, rushing for 107 yards per game. Quarterback Tyson Lee completes 59.3 percent of his passes for 140.8 yards per game.

The good news for Kentucky is that junior running back Derrick Locke is healthier than he was last Saturday in a 36-13 win over Louisiana-Monroe and should see the ball more against MSU. Locke rushes for 70.7 yards per game but has been bothered by a sore knee.

“I don’t think anybody is 100 percent at this time of year, but he (Locke) will be a lot better than he was last week,” Brooks said.

The Wildcats are nursing a slew of injuries to other players as well. The one drawing the most concern in the Kentucky camp is a strained MCL to senior linebacker Micah Johnson. Johnson suffered the injury in the early stages of the win over Louisiana-Monroe.

“I think our rush defense (holding opponents’ running attack in check) is a lot better than it might look statistically,” Brooks said. “It’s going to be a big challenge Saturday, and the question will be whether we will have Micah Johnson in the middle or not. That will impact our ability to do as good a job as I would like to do.”

UK notes
>The Wildcats host Eastern Kentucky on Nov. 7. That game will start at 1 p.m. and be televised on Lexington station WKYT (Channel 27, FBP Cable 6) and also on a delayed basis on the UK network.

>Kentucky senior center Jorge Gonzalez has been honored as the SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week for his efforts in the Wildcats’ win over Louisiana-Monroe.

>Brooks said Monday that junior quarterback Mike Hartline is behind schedule in recovering from multiple injuries to a leg, suffered in the third quarter of the Oct. 10 loss at South Carolina.
“Mike is not quite as far along as we would like at this point,” Brooks says.