Time to take a look back and see how our opponents have held up to my preseason prognostication. Two games really aren't a lot to go on, but lets make sweeping assumptions anyway.
2010 Season Preview - Week 3 v. Mississippi St., Sept. 18th<---READ THIS FIRST
Strength
It's early but I wouldn't say MSU's D is impressing people just yet. 3 sacks on the year (2 v Auburn) and 3 INTs (2 v Memphis). Held Auburn just under 200yds on the ground with all of their rushing options, but was great against Memphis (just 46). They were actually stronger against Auburn than Memphis passing yds-wise, but that probably says more about Auburn's offense than anything else. They have true SEC depth, so don't expect them to fold as easily as Vandy did. It will be great to see how our ground game does in this one. If we can remain dominate against a much higher quality Ground D, It's going to take a whole lot of pressure off our other offensive woes.
Weakness
On the one hand, we've got not room to criticize anyone else's passing game, but MSU has shown they have at least a competent air attack. Against Memphis' light and fluffy secondary, they torched it for 372 yds on 20 passes and 4 TDs. But against Auburn they only managed 129 yds (only one INT in each game). Add to that some critical dropped passes and questionable throws and it seems this dual-QB situation isn't quite there yet. Aside from Bumphis, Brandon Heavens looks to be the main air threat.
The Rest
While they didn't expose it against Memphis, it was clear last week that their offense will depend heavily on Chad Bumphis, both their leading rusher and receiver against Auburn. As for a true rusher, both Elliott and Ballard are getting about the same amount of carries on the ground, but neither is really pulling away as a leader yet.
Head to SB Nation's For Whom the Cowbell Tolls for more MSU coverage.