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Grading the Mississippi State Bulldogs after Saturday's disappointing loss to Vanderbilt feels a bit like grading a student who left the first half of the exam blank and nearly aced the second.
Vanderbilt carried a 16-0 lead into halftime at Davis Wade Stadium before Mississippi State outscored the Commodores 23-9 after the break, only to come up two points short.
Some units held up their end of the bargain, while others handed the coaching staff a long film session heading into Auburn week. The grades start at the back of the defense and finish with the quarterback.
Vanderbilt quarterback Jared Curtis completed 17 of 27 passes for 168 yards, and the Bulldogs' back end kept him from throwing a touchdown pass while allowing no completion longer than 33 yards. Cornerback Kelley Jones, a top NFL prospect quarterbacks rarely test, anchored a group that forced Vanderbilt to grind on the ground.
The play of the game belonged to this group. Linebacker Tyshun Willis got home on Curtis at the Vanderbilt 14 and knocked the ball loose, and Will Whitson scooped it up and scored to pull Mississippi State within 16-14 in the third quarter.
For Whitson, a seventh-year defensive end whose 2025 season ended with a torn ACL in the second game, the score capped a long road back.
The run defense kept the grade from climbing higher. Vanderbilt ran 52 times for 160 yards, and those carries fueled an 18-play, 87-yard drive that ran 10:19 off the clock. On the bright side, the unit forced five three-and-outs.
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Kicker Kyle Ferrie hit his lone field goal try from 26 yards along with both extra points, and the punting unit averaged 47.6 yards on seven punts with two downed inside the 20. The grade slips because Vanderbilt's Cole Spence recovered the late onside kick.
Sanfrisco Magee caught both of Mississippi State's touchdown passes, a 65-yard strike on the opening drive of the second half and a 30-yarder in the back corner of the end zone in the final minute. The first one woke up a quiet Davis Wade Stadium crowd.
Vanderbilt entered the night with the SEC's third-worst run defense, and Mississippi State still managed just 43 rushing yards on 19 attempts. Fluff Bothwell carried 14 times for 50 yards and finished with a team-high 76 yards from scrimmage, while the line allowed three sacks.
AJ Swann started his second straight game after leaving the Texas loss with an upper-body injury, and he did it against the program where his college career began in 2022.
Swann finished 23-of-36 for 254 yards and two touchdowns, but Jordan Matthews' interception with 1:37 left in the first half led to three more Vanderbilt points before the break. Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby put part of the burden on himself after the game.
"I've got to do a better job of coaching (Swann) Sunday through Saturday and create some predictable outcomes for us," Lebby said.
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Marvin Uzor covers for Mississippi State Bulldogs On SI and Colorado Buffaloes On SI, part of the Sports Illustrated Network. He has 8+ years of experience as a sports writer and editor, with work appearing on platforms like Yahoo Sports, The Grueling Truth, Last Word on Sports, Neutral Zone, and Frenetic Pace Sports. He has covered everything from college football and the NFL to the NBA, MLB, soccer, and the business of sports. Marvin also covered the 2026 FIFA World Cup for The Grueling Truth and has 3 years of experience working as a Senior Content Editor for ABC's Shark Tank. He is a longtime follower of college football and soccer who enjoys digging into the stories that make sports worth the time.
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