Fresh off spirited win, Mississippi State braces for Alcorn State

Mississippi State will try to avoid a letdown on Saturday when they host winless Alcorn State in Starkville, Miss.

Blake Shapen completed a 58-yard touchdown pass to Brenen Thompson with 30 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to lift the Bulldogs to a 24-20 upset win over then-No. 12 Arizona State last weekend.

The play occurred shortly after the Wildcats went ahead 20-17 after rallying from a 17-point deficit.

Mississippi State (2-0) will now change its focus to Alcorn State, which has dropped 10-point decisions to Northwestern State and Alabama A&M.

"We've got to do an incredible job of creating great focus on getting better," Bulldogs coach Jeff Lebby said. "There's stuff all over the tape where we have the ability to play better. We're going to have to play better moving forward. That's the focus. I think our older guys understand that."

The Alcorn State defense has allowed 30.5 points per game.

Linebacker Stemarion Edwards leads Alcorn State with 20 tackles this season.

Former Mississippi State linebacker Tabias Hinton is third on the team with 13 tackles.

Jacorian Sewell, a senior who hails from Mississippi, leads Alcorn State's rushing game with 176 yards and a touchdown this season.

"My thing with Sewell, and I've told him personally, is how can we help him get to the NFL," Alcorn State coach Cedric Thomas said. "We owe him that. He's been around."

Shapen was 19 of 33 for 279 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Arizona State.

Thompson had six catches for 133 yards and two touchdowns. Anthony Evans finished with nine catches and 108 yards and a touchdown.

Mississippi State's defense had six tackles for loss, two sacks and two interceptions.

The Bulldogs beat a top-15 nonconference opponent for the first time since 1991.

It will be the third meeting between Mississippi State and Alcorn State, with the Bulldogs outscoring the Braves 100-23 in the previous two matchups.

--Field Level Media