The Oklahoma Sooners are looking for a bounceback performance this week when they hit the road to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Oklahoma is the road favorite, but it could face one of the nation's most talented players on Saturday afternoon.

Quarterback Kamario Taylor has been the engine driving the Bulldogs' offense. Without Taylor against LSU, the Bulldogs were shut out 31-0. But when he's available, he's one of the nation's most dynamic players.

The story of the game comes down to an offense that ranks last in the SEC in touchdowns scored in 2026 with 12. Five of those touchdowns were scored in the season-opening win against UTEP. Since then, the Sooners have scored two touchdowns in a game just once and haven't surpassed 14 points, both of which came against New Mexico.

This week offers a good opportunity to build the offense against a Bulldogs defense ranked 118th in the nation in scoring defense. If it's ever going to come together for Ben Arbuckle, John Mateer, and the offense, it's going to be this week.

A Tale of Two Games

The Oklahoma Sooners don’t lose back-to-back games. They also don’t win back-to-back games, but that’s beside the point. All signs point to another win in Starkville this weekend. However, there's some optimism that Kamario Taylor will play. If you don’t know who that is, you will. He might be the most talented player in all of college football. When he’s at the helm, Mississippi State possesses one of the best offenses in college football. That’s why, if he plays, I think the Bulldogs will get the win because I think he can score a few touchdowns. If he doesn’t play, it’ll be all Sooners.

Jaron Spor, Contributor

Defensive Battle in Starkvegas?

The injury report is as significant as ever for both teams in this matchup. But assuming Mississippi State is without starting quarterback Kamario Taylor and possibly running back Fluff Bothwell, I just don’t know how the Bulldogs can put up enough points to beat Oklahoma. The Sooners' defense has been the one thing they can count on this season. And a backup Mississippi State Bulldog unit isn’t going to get it done. Offensively for Oklahoma, there are some major question marks as well. The Sooners' offensive line is so banged up, it isn’t clear yet who will play where. Still, Oklahoma is the better overall team.

James D. Jackson, Contributor

Mississippi State Stars?

So much of this game boils down to whether or not Kamario Taylor and Fluff Bothwell will be able to play. With that duo fully healthy earlier in the year, State looked like a problem in the SEC. The Bulldogs aren’t a strong defense, but you simply can’t expect OU’s offense to be able to score more than 13 points on anybody right now. MSU’s offense is good enough to put a few drives together on the Oklahoma defense if the QB and RB play, and that’s probably enough to get the job done for Mississippi State, unless the Sooners get touchdowns out of the special teams or defense on the road.

Aaron Gelvin, Contributor

Oklahoma Bounces Back

We're going to operate under the belief that Mississippi State quarterback Kamario Taylor is going to play this week. Still, this is a Sooners defense playing at an incredibly high level. The defense will play well even if Taylor is under center.

But the question is how the offense responds after a poor final 15 minutes against Kentucky. I believe they respond in the right way, put a couple of touchdowns on the board, and play a clean game.

The Sooners might be the favorite in this one, but don't sleep on the Bulldogs to pull off the home upset for former Sooners offensive coordinator turned Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby.