South Carolina Football: Getting to know the opponent: Mississippi State

KM: Who are the Mississippi State players/matchups to watch this Saturday? Give one offensive player, a defensive player, and an “X Factor.”

EE: The offense is going to live and die with Will Rogers until they ultimately decide to make the switch to the transfer, Mike Wright. If we see a repeat of last Saturday where he looked overwhelmed and out of answers, it will, again, be a long night in Columbia, SC. I am not looking for him to have a highlight reel performance, but he has to be able to play at a level that is not going to hold the entire offense back. We have seen what he is capable of, and Rogers knows that he needs to be better. I want to see some senior leadership from the senior QB.
On defense, I am going to look at defensive tackle Nathan Pickering. He is the strength of the interior, and if he is able to win some of those battles inside to take Rattler off-base and uncomfortable, I think that becomes a much more winnable game for MSU. If Rattler is allowed to sit back, survey the field, and attack, I am worried we see another game where the DBs are chasing guys all day.
Had a few different thoughts here, but the X Factor here is going to be the guy that has flipped many games for MSU already in his career, is kick returner Lideatrick “Tulu” Griffin. As South Carolina football fans know, a truly electric returner is a game-changer for any team, but especially one that has struggled to move the ball and needs to be given the shortest field possible. He has his strengths as a receiver as well, but kick returns have a special way of igniting games for their respective team.