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Bowl and SWAC East Hopes
By bryanflynnCollege football is heading into its home stretch as October fades into November. It is time once again to look into the bowl and SWAC East hopes for Mississippi teams.
This season has featured more bad than good, with just one team that has a winning record at this point in the season: the University of Southern Mississippi. At 4-3, the team comes off a bye week with a winning record.
Delta State University, at 4-4, and Alcorn State University, at 3-3, are the only teams that currently even boast a .500 record. The University of Mississippi (3-4), Jackson State University (3-4), Mississippi State University (2-5), Millsaps College (2-5), Mississippi College (2-6), Belhaven University (1-6) and Mississippi Valley State University (0-8) all have losing records.
Things aren’t looking good for the teams in our state. Time is running out for a dramatic turnaround, and for most teams, even a turnaround won’t earn them a winning season.
Even as bad as things are right now, Mississippi teams still have hopes of a bowl or SWAC Championship Game berth. Here is a quick look at those hopes for five teams.
Mississippi State is still mathematically alive to reach a bowl game. The Bulldogs should get a win this week against Samford and reach 3-5 on the season.
MSU has to be kicking itself for missing a field goal in a loss to the University of South Alabama, a late rally against Louisiana State University, an overtime loss to Brigham Young University and leaving too much time on the clock so the University of Kentucky to make a game-winning field goal.
If a few of those four losses had gone the other way, the Bulldogs would be playing for six wins this weekend or already have six wins. Discounting a blowout loss to Auburn University, MSU has four losses by a combined 13 points.
Even if they win this weekend, the trouble for the Bulldogs is finding three more wins. MSU’s schedule over the last four weeks is home games against Texas A&M University (6-1) and the University of Arkansas (5-3) with road trips to the University of Alabama (8-0) and UM in between the home games.
It seems impossible to find three more wins in those four games. MSU would have to upset three teams just to make a bowl game.
While still alive, the reality is the Bulldogs’ bowl streak ends this year. It could have gone differently for MSU, but close losses doomed this team.
The schedule looks a little better for the Rebels, even with two straight losses to Arkansas and LSU. They still have to win three more games to reach a bowl game, but they have opportunities to get there with the remaining games.
UM faces an Auburn team that has found its lost offense. The Tigers look like a tough game to win …
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Free Tax Counseling and Filing. IRS/AIM or AARP volunteers will do electronic filing. Bring all necessary documents. Joint filers must come together. Free.
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