Analyzing Mississippi State, discussing 2012 Bonfire

Notes from Jackie Sherrill interview

* This game is a huge opportunity for A&M. You’re looking at two teams that are very close together and who are fighting for positioning in the SEC West. Realistically, the winner of this game could finish at second in the division which could affect bowl seeding at the end of the season. When you break down this game, it’s very even matched with some very interesting matchups. Mississippi State sits at fourth in the league in defense, but A&M sits in the top two in the league in offense, so that matchup alone is something to watch.

* The biggest matchup of the game will be the A&M wide receivers against the Bulldogs very good corners. Winning that battle will go far towards winning the game for whichever team comes out on top of that matchup.

* He’s not sure if Mississippi State has ever had a quarterback as pure as Tyler Russell. Russell has great size and thickness to play the quarterback position, and also has a very strong arm. He isn’t afraid to throw the ball in the hole and get the ball to his receiver through a tight window.

* Mississippi State is holding a reunion of the Snow Bowl this weekend, so the Bulldogs will be wearing white. The players from that game will be back in town, and he will be honored at halftime along with those players in commemoration of the game. Unfortunately, he will want to pull for both sides.

* He doesn’t have the ties with Alabama (his alma mater) like he does with Mississippi State and Texas A&M. Even though he won a national championship as a member of the Crimson Tide, he will definitely be pulling for A&M when that game comes around. This past January when the coaching change was occurring, if anyone had said that you were going to beat Arkansas, Auburn, Ole Miss and play LSU and Florida down to the wire, people would have thought you were crazy. The coaches have done an outstanding job, and if A&M can find a way to  win a few more games this year, Coach Sumlin should end up winning Coach of the Year in the SEC.

* Dan Mullen has done a great job so far. At Mississippi State, you’re not going to be able to walk in and take the best players away from Alabama or LSU from a recruiting standpoint, so you have to develop players to gain success. Mullen has been able to find some really good players, and has been able to develop a couple of guys into first-round NFL talents.