No. 7 Tennessee leads Mississippi State 33-14, Bulldogs still winless in SEC

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Mississippi State couldn’t add to the chaos in the SEC standings on Saturday, but the Bulldogs will have more chances before the end of the season.

No. 7 Tennessee secured a 33-14 win over the visiting Bulldogs, who are still winless in conference play. It wasn’t the worst game of the season for the Bulldogs, who ended up covering the 24.5-point spread, but the Volunteers’ lead was never really in danger.

Tennessee took a 14-0 lead, but Mississippi State cut it to 23-14 midway through the third quarter on an 18-yard touchdown run by Johnnie Daniels. But Tennessee responded less than three minutes later with a 33-yard touchdown run by Dylan Simpson.

The only point scored in the fourth quarter was a 38-yard field goal by Tennessee kicker Max Gilbert, his fourth field goal of the game.

Quarterback Michael Van Buren had the worst game of his early career, completing just 10 of 26 passes for 92 yards and one interception. He also had a net total of -9 rushing yards, most of which was a byproduct of the four sacks recorded by Tennessee’s defense.

Kevin Coleman Jr. received half of Van Buren’s completions and led the Bulldogs with 68 yards.

Mississippi State’s offense had the most success running the ball, gaining 179 yards on the ground. Davon Booth had a team-high 125 yards and Daniels had 63.

Defensively, the Bulldogs gave up 452 total yards against a balanced Tennessee attack. The Volunteers had 212 passing yards and 240 rushing yards and had nearly 10 minutes more time of possession than Mississippi State.

Mississippi State has next weekend off before concluding its season against No. 24 Missouri and No. 16 Ole Miss in a six-day span.