SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 4, 2010
Mississippi State loves to throw the ball and does it well. Memphis was one of the worst teams in the country in pass defense last season. And the Bulldogs exploited that weakness in a 49-7 rout Saturday.

In its second year under coach Dan Mullen, Mississippi State had far too much firepower for Memphis. Mullen’s vaunted spread offense lit up the Memphis defense for 545 total yards, nearly 375 yards coming in the air. Quarterbacks Chris Relf and redshirt freshman Tyler Russell combined to throw five touchdowns, two each to Chad Bumphis and Brandon Heavens. After a summer-long competition, Relf earned the starting job. But it was Russell who took the majority of snaps, completing 13 of 16 passes for 256 yards and four touchdowns. Both Bumphis and Heavens had at least 100 yards receiving and Leon Berry added 91.

Mississippi State jumped on Memphis early, scoring on its first two possessions. Relf connected with Sean Brauchle for a 55-yard score and Russell followed that up with a 20-yard touchdown to Heavens. Running back Vick Ballard busted through the middle of the Memphis line for a 51-yard touchdown to give the Bulldogs a 20-0 lead at intermission.

Memphis avoided a shutout when Marcus Rucker caught a 27-yard pass from Cannon Smith with less than two minutes left in the game.

The Bulldogs can’t enjoy the win too long as they'll host Auburn in a big SEC West game on Thursday night.