The Music City Bowl brings the SEC vs the ACC to Nasvhille on December 30th. The Mississippi State Bulldogs kickoff against the Louisville Cardinals at 4pm. We’ll preview the two teams here.
The Mississippi State season has been similar to last year’s only with lower highs and lower lows. The up and down of the season almost saw them miss out on the postseason. The first disappointment came against Kansas State in a game they led for a mere 5 minutes.
They followed with a good win against Kentucky but went on a 4 game losing streak which left them in a spot needing to finish the season 3-1. The Bulldogs did just that with two dominant wins against Arkansas and Abilene Christian and a nail biter against in-state rival Ole Miss.
The Bulldogs are a run heavy team. They are lead by junior runningback Kylin Hill. Hill is bound for the NFL after a 1,347, 10 touchdown season. He is averaging 112.3 yards per game this year and has reached as high as 234 yards in a game this season.
Hawkins set the Louisville record for single season rushing yards and touchdowns in a season. (Photo by si.com).
The Cardinals were coming off their worst season since 1997 after firing Bobby Petrino last year. 2018’s 2-10 season was just the third losing record the Cardinals have had since that 1997 disaster.
Scott Satterfield has taken over and won over the Cardinal faithful in a hurry. The Cardinals far exceeded expectations in a competitive loss to Notre Dame. They pulled off a 5-3 ACC record including a thrilling 62-59 win on the road over then No.19 Wake Forest.
The Cardinals have a high powered offense that ranks 3rd in the ACC. They are led by redshirt freshman Javian Hawkins. The Florida native is 9th in the country in rushing yards with 1,420 yards this season to go along with 8 touchdowns. Hawkins has been a handful for nearly every team they have faced this year and will look to be a factor once again in the bowl game.
These two teams line up pretty similarly. Both struggle to defend the pass but neither team is very good offensively through the air. Both teams are a run heavy offense, but Mississippi State has the slight edge defensively against the run.
With both defenses being less than stellar it’s looking to be a high scoring affair. If either coach is able to develop a gameplan to attack the opposing defense through the air it may prove to be a difference maker. Both teams are susceptible to the pass and have shown time and time again that they can’t slow it down.
Mississippi State: 30, Louisville: 35
Make sure to check out our college football page for more updates and rankings.
You can like The Game Haus on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for more sports and esports articles from great TGH writers!
Players must be 21 years of age or older or reach the minimum age for gambling in their respective state and located in jurisdictions where online gambling is legal. Please play responsibly. Bet with your head, not over it. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, and wants help, call or visit: (a) the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey at 1-800-Gambler or www.800gambler.org; or (b) Gamblers Anonymous at 855-2-CALL-GA or www.gamblersanonymous.org.
