[SLIDESHOW] Dixon, Bulldogs run over Cats

Corey Peters was confused. The senior defensive tackle wasn’t sure about what had just

happened. He couldn’t tell if Mississippi State senior tailback Anthony Dixon was as talented as he looked in the Cats’ 31-24 loss to the Bulldogs on Saturday night or if UK’s defense had helped make him look like the lovechild of a bulldozer and a ballerina.

A reporter told him Dixon finished with a career-high 252 rushing yards on the night.
“He’s not that good,” Peters quickly decided, shaking his head. “He’s a great back and we just didn’t play that well.”

Dixon’s ground assault, punctuated by two touchdowns and no tackles for loss, propelled the Bulldogs (4-5, 2-3 Southeastern Conference) past the Cats. Mississippi State outgained UK 493 yards to 308, including 348 total rushing yards. UK defenders bounced off Dixon on nearly every play as he rumbled to a 7.6 yards-per-carry average on 33 carries.

“They only ran three or four plays and we prepared for those plays, and they continuously ran it down our throat,” Peters said. “It’s sort of a helpless feeling … They just continuously, continuously, continued to pound it.”

The loss spoiled what initially appeared to be a coming-out party for freshman quarterback Morgan Newton, who played the entire game at quarterback after shuffling back and forth with junior Will Fidler previous weeks.

Newton completed 11-of-18 passes for 119 yards while also running for 49 yards and a touchdown, but he made what UK head coach Rich Brooks called “young” mistakes down the stretch. Newton threw an interception in the red zone on one possession, and he was sacked three times on the night.

“He did make some really good throws and did some good things as well as making some mistakes,” Brooks said. “Right now, it doesn’t seem like we have anyone who isn’t going to make some mistakes.”

Behind improved play from Newton, UK climbed out to a 14-3 lead before Dixon led the Bulldogs back. Newton even led UK down the field in the closing minutes with a chance at a touchdown to tie the game before he was tackled on fourth down, dashing UK’s hopes of another comeback.

Despite Newton’s progress, he said he was going to have to win back some teammates after the loss and improve his play and his leadership ability.

“We’ve got people who have been around this program a long time,” Newton said. “Obviously, I’m fresh here. I’m 18 years old. I just want to go out and play for them, I know there’s a lot of seniors that have four or five games left in their careers and you want to help them win games, and I wasn’t able to do it tonight.”

Once again, Brooks took much of the loss personally. He said he was outcoached and didn’t impress upon his team the kind of physical play Mississippi State would bring. Sophomore wide receiver Randall Cobb said he wasn’t sure how the team could play so poorly on such a big night for the program.

“For us to not come out and play with any emotion — this was a big night with Halloween, a lot of alumni, we had a blackout — just so many things and we didn’t play with any emotion,” Cobb said. “I don’t really know what to say right now.”

The loss prevents UK from having the possibility of becoming bowl-eligible with a home win next week against Eastern Kentucky. Players said with the loss, the team is all but eliminated from contending for the bowls they wanted to contend for and they now have to fight just to reach a bowl.

“The season isn’t lost,” Brooks said. “But it certainly isn’t going to be the type of season we thought it could be if we had won this football game.”