Mississippi State Football: 3 reasons to watch 2019 Outback Bowl vs. Iowa

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STARKVILLE, MS – OCTOBER 27: Trayveon Williams #5 of the Texas A&M Aggies runs with the ball as Jeffery Simmons #94 and Mark McLaurin #41 of the Mississippi State Bulldogs defend during the second half at Davis Wade Stadium on October 27, 2018 in Starkville, Mississippi. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

1. The Mississippi State defense

Mississippi State, as a member of the SEC, certainly lives up to the standard that pervades the conference –– a strong defense.

Outside of the play of Fitzgerald, the Bulldogs have benefitted from superb play on the defensive side of the ball.

Mississippi State finished the season ranked No. 3 in the country in total defense, which is higher than all of the four teams that secured spots in the College Football Playoff.

The Bulldogs’ defense has a slew of unfathomable stats to ponder. For one, the defense has allowed just 12 opposing touchdowns.

Mississippi State has stymied offenses by holding opponents to less than 270 yards per game while surrendering just a little more than four yards per play, on average.

In their last two contests, the Bulldogs didn’t give up a single touchdown, limiting Arkansas and Ole Miss to field goals.

Earlier in the season, the Bulldogs also ceded 24 points to No. 1 Alabama –– the least amount of points scored by the Crimson Tide this season.

The Bulldogs will definitely face a test against Iowa’s mostly passing offense, though, they will be at an advantage because of the absence of Fant.

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On the other side, Iowa also fields a strong defense which shouldn’t be overlooked in this matchup. The Hawkeyes have produced the nation’s No. 7 ranked defense. Therefore, this game has the potential to be long scoring because of these formidable defenses.

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