Quick Look at Mississippi State: Part 1-The Offense...

As Tennessee recovers from its second loss of the season against Georgia last Saturday with a bye week, let's take a quick look ahead to next Saturday's match up with Mississippi State.  The Bulldog offense is led by quarterback Tyler Russell.  Russell has thrown for over 800 yards this season, with 8 touchdowns, and only one interception.  While the Bulldog passing attack has been serviceable, it is their ground game that has grabbed the attention of their opponents this year.  The Bulldogs currently have three running backs averaging more than five yards per carry.  This group is led by LaDarius Perkins.  The junior running back from Greenville, MS has rushed for almost 400 yards so far this season, while scoring 5 times, and averaging almost 7 yards per carry.  The Tennessee coaching staff must use the bye week to their advantage to shore up some of the issues the Volunteers faced on the defensive side of the ball against both Florida and Georgia.  Mississippi State is clearly capable of producing the same type numbers and big plays in the ground game if the Volunteers do not make the proper adjustments.