2020 Mississippi State
4–7 (3–7 Southeastern Conference), coached by Mike Leach. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest upsetBeat No. 6 LSU 44–34Sep 26
LSU was ranked No. 6 and favored to win.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26 | at 6LSU | W 44–34 | 14% |
| Oct 3 | vs Arkansas | L 14–21 | 82% |
| Oct 10 | at Kentucky | L 2–24 | 38% |
| Oct 17 | vs 11Texas A&M | L 14–28 | 44% |
| Oct 31 | at 2Alabama | L 0–41 | 10% |
| Nov 7 | vs Vanderbilt | W 24–17 | 76% |
| Nov 21 | at 13Georgia | L 24–31 | 17% |
| Nov 28 | at Ole Miss | L 24–31 | 42% |
| Dec 12 | vs Auburn | L 10–24 | 35% |
| Dec 19 | vs Missouri | W 51–32 | 43% |
| Dec 31Bowls & playoff | vs 20TulsaArmed Forces Bowl | W 28–26 | 36% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Beat Tulsa 28–26 in the Armed Forces Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 10th in the Southeastern Conference.
In program history: The 63rd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 124 on file).
AP poll, week by week
- Wk 5: 16
- Record
- 4–7
- Conference
- 3–7 tied for 10th in Southeastern Conference
- AP final
- Unranked peak No. 16
- Points
- 235–309
- Coach
- Mike Leach
- Elo
- 1489 −26 this season
- SP+ rating
- -1.4 No. 78 of 130; offense No. 88, defense No. 58
- SRS
- 1.6 No. 38 of 77 in FBS
- Returning
- 50% of last season’s EPA, No. 93 of 130
- Recruiting class
- No. 27 roster talent No. 24 in FBS
- Defensive coordinator
- Zach Arnett
- Offense
- Air raid
- Defense
- 3–3–5
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | -0.04 | 41% | 1.11 | 118th of 127 |
| Defense | 0.06 | 41% | 1.29 | 41st of 127 |
| Opponent-adjusted | -0.00 off 0.05 def | 41% off 40% def | — | 122nd off 27th def |
How these are measured
Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 2.9 | own 28 | 20% allowed |
| Defense | 3.2 | own 31 | 16% caused |
CORE rating -5.5, 87th of 127 (offense -12.5, defense -7.0).
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.
Leaders
| Passing yards | Will Rogers QB | 1,976 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Will Rogers QB | 11 TD |
| Rushing yards | Jo’quavious Marks RB | 312 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Dillon Johnson RB | 4 TD |
| Receiving yards | Jaden Walley WR | 718 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Osirus Mitchell WR | 4 TD |
| Tackles | Erroll Thompson LB | 95 tkl |
| Sacks | Tyrus Wheat LB | 5 sacks |
| Interceptions | Emmanuel Forbes CB | 4 INT |
Top recruits in the 2020 class
| Woody Marks RB | ★★★★ | No. 138 |
| Emmanuel Forbes CB | ★★★★ | No. 187 |
| Lideatrick Griffin ATH | ★★★★ | No. 271 |
| Dillon Johnson ATH | ★★★ | No. 430 |
| Janari Dean S | ★★★ | No. 461 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2020 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 1 | 3.0 | 0.873 |
| Running backs | 1 | 4.0 | 0.937 |
| Receivers | 1 | 3.0 | 0.846 |
| Offensive line | 3 | 3.0 | 0.841 |
| Defensive line | 3 | 3.0 | 0.872 |
| Linebackers | 1 | 3.0 | 0.878 |
| Defensive backs | 4 | 3.3 | 0.886 |
| Athletes and specialists | 5 | 3.2 | 0.869 |
| Whole class | 19 | 3.2 | 0.872 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Drafted in 2021
The 2021 draft| Rd 7 | Marquiss Spencer DE | Denver Broncos |
| Rd 7 | Kylin Hill RB | Green Bay Packers |
Roster 118
The 2020 roster118 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2020 line; 58 have a stat line. See the roster
2020 Southeastern Conference standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 10–0 | 13–0 | 1 |
| Texas A&M | 8–1 | 9–1 | 4 |
 Florida | 8–2 | 8–4 | 13 |
| Georgia | 7–2 | 8–2 | 7 |
| Auburn | 6–4 | 6–5 | |
| LSU | 5–5 | 5–5 | |
| Missouri | 5–5 | 5–5 | |
| Ole Miss | 4–5 | 5–5 | |
| Kentucky | 4–6 | 5–6 | |
 Mississippi State | 3–7 | 4–7 | |
| Arkansas | 3–7 | 3–7 | |
 Tennessee | 3–7 | 3–7 | |
 South Carolina | 2–8 | 2–8 | |
| Vanderbilt | 0–9 | 0–9 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.