A quarterback named Manning is coming to Starkville for the first time in more than two decades, albeit with a lot less hype than in the preseason.

Arch Manning and the No. 22 Texas Longhorns will head to Davis Wade Stadium this Saturday for Mississippi State’s next game.

The Longhorns haven’t lived up to their status as preseason No. 1 and Manning hasn’t played well enough to be in the running for the Heisman Trophy everyone was prepared to hand him in the preseason.

“Right now, they’re a team that’s really played to their identity,” Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby said on Monday. “And they have played great defense. I think they’re top three in the country in scoring, top five in total defense. They’ve been great situationally. They’ve created turnovers. But then they have, they’ve been really, really good on teams.”

But Texas is still favored to beat Mississippi State.

The Longhorns are 6.5-point favorites, according to FanDuel Sportsbook and ESPN’s matchup predictor gives the Longhorns a 79.7 percent chance of winning.

SP+ Projections aren’t much better for the Bulldogs:

Texas also ranks No. 7 overall in Football Power Index and Mississippi State is No. 47.

That being said, the Bulldogs have shown they have the ability to beat ranked teams. Especially, at the cowbell-fueled sensory deprivation chamber known as Davis Wade Stadium.

Mississippi State beat then-No. 12 Arizona State and nearly beat then-No. 12 Tennessee, taking the Volunteers into overtime.

Of course, there’s also last week’s loss to Florida that should’ve been a Mississippi State win.

And Texas has shown an ability to lose games it shouldn’t. A season-opening loss to Ohio State aside, the other loss came against the team that just beat the Bulldogs.

The Longhorns have also survived despite poor performances on the field against UTEP and Kentucky.

So, Texas is beatable and the Bulldogs are capable of winning Saturday’s game. Here’s how you can watch the game:

Who: No. 22 Texas Longhorns (5-2, 2-1 SEC) at Mississippi State Bulldogs (4-3, 0-3 SEC)
When: 3:15 p.m., Saturday
Where: Davis Wade Stadium, Starkville, Miss.
TV: SEC Network
Radio: Live Radio
Stats: Live Stats
Series History: Texas leads the all-time series 3-2
Last Meeting: Texas 35, Mississippi State 13 (September 28, 2024)
Last time out, Bulldogs: lost to Florida, 23-21
Last time out, Longhorns: def. Kentucky, 16-13 OT