Ole Miss vs. Mississippi State: Maroon and White Nation's Andrew Miller talks Bulldogs ahead of the Egg Bowl

The 121st meeting between rivals Ole Miss and Mississippi State will meet on Friday, not their traditional Thanksgiving Day slot. However, the desire for both programs to win the Egg Bowl remains the same.

We spoke to Andrew Miller, our colleague at Maroon and White Nation, and asked him the important questions about the game, the season, and the future.

Mississippi State Site Expert Q&A

1. Year one under Jeff Lebby would always be challenging, but with a 2-9 record heading into the Egg Bowl, what positives can be taken from the first 11 games?

The positives are solely on the offensive side of the ball. It hasn't been the instant impact offense fans envisioned when Lebby was hired, but they've had some solid games against good defenses and, at a minimum, have had moments in every game where you see the potential even when it isn't fully clicking. There's confidence that with some further development and a few new pieces, particularly on the OL, they'll field some fun offenses under Lebby, which is what you expected.

2. Heading into Friday's game, Ole Miss struggled to run the ball in SEC play but came up against a Bulldogs defense ranked No. 127 in the nation against the run. Can Mississippi State win that battle?

I seriously doubt it. There have been moments over the back half of the year where they've done a better job of rallying to the run to make some stops or even get TFLs. But by and large they're simply an awful rushing defense (and awful overall defense for that matter). They lack SEC quality DL, so they get pushed around by everyone. And fitting the run has been an issue too. I'd expect Ole Miss to figure out their run game woes.