Lane Kiffin shares concerns of facing Will Rogers despite struggles

For several reasons, Mississippi State QB Will Rogers hasn’t had the season that one would expect from someone that’s up near the top of the all-time passing list in the SEC. Even so, Lane Kiffin isn’t letting that change how Ole Miss is going to prepare for him in the Egg Bowl on Thanksgiving.

Kiffin spoke about Rogers’ season and him as a quarterback during his press conference on Monday. He noted that any thought of a down season that he’s having in comparison to previous years hasn’t made the Rebels forget what they’ve seen from him, overall and against them, in his career.

“We know the player that he is – how he has pulled out games before, thrown for huge numbers in games,” Kiffin said.

Kiffin also noted that, after a four-game absence, Rogers should be even better considering he won’t be returning for the first time in six weeks when they play this weekend.

“I’m sure him getting back and having a game under his belt last week probably will help him,” said Kiffin.

In seven games this season, Rogers has posted his career-lows or the second-lowest numbers of his career behind only his freshman season. He has thrown for 1,419 yards, a dozen touchdowns, and four interceptions on a 59.1% completion rate.

That includes last weekend in his return in a 41-20 win over Southern Miss. In that game, he may have only completed 44.4% of his passes for 144 yards but finished with two touchdowns.

Whether it’s the season as a whole or because of the injuries, Rogers hasn’t been at his best this fall. That makes no difference to Kiffin, though, as Ole Miss is going to prepare for the quarterback that they know that he is, regardless of what he or the Bulldogs have been this season.

“We’re prepared to play a really good quarterback,” said Kiffin.

Ole Miss vs Mississippi State point spread: Picking Rebels vs Bulldogs

The last week of the season will give us one of the SEC’s best rivalries with Ole Miss vs. Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl.

In the days leading up to the game, on ‘Andy Staples On3’, Staples brought in Jake Crain to discuss the matchup and make their betting picks for the game.

“Fan Duel has this at Mississippi State +12.5,” said Staples. “I’ve seen it in other places at Mississippi State +11.”

“Ole Miss is gonna cover whatever the spread is,” Staples said. “In this rivalry? You don’t feel bad for the other team if they fire their coach. You beat them down if you can beat them down.”

Crain was stride for stride with Staples’s assessment. He agreed that Ole Miss should not show any mercy to their in-state rival despite their current disarray.

In fact, he took it a step further. He suggested the the Rebels beat the Bulldogs so badly that they set the program back even further.

“If you get a chance to step on the throat? You step on the throat,” said Crain. “You want to set them back as far as you possibly can when they are down.”

“Here’s what I’ll say about this game: Mississippi State is going to play free. They’re going to play loose and that’s great. It is a great story (of) what Greg Knox has been able to do coming off the firing of Zach Arnett – who took over following the tragic loss of Mike Leach. I think Mississippi State will put up a fight early. This game will be tighter than what people think, maybe even going into halftime.”