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What else did we throw into today’s Bulldog Brew?

⚽️ Bulldog Soccer climbs the rankings
👟 Cross Country announces 2024 schedule
🐶 And much, much more!

🎙️ DEAR OL’ STATE

Dear Ol’ State: Second Scrimmage In The Books. This past Saturday, Mississippi State football held its second scrimmage of the preseason. Joel Coleman and Logan Lowery were there, and on the latest Dear Ol' State, the guys chat about what they saw and bring you head coach Jeff Lebby's full post-scrimmage press conference.

📈 STOCK UP

🔼 Climbing The Ranks. Following Bulldog Soccer’s most recent win, the team reached unprecedented heights, earning the highest ranking in program history at No. 11 in the latest TopDrawerSoccer Poll. Sitting at 2-0 so far this season, the Bulldogs’ road ahead offers both challenges and opportunities. This week, the Bulldogs are set to hit the road for the first time in 2024, traveling to North Carolina for a pair of crucial matchups against Charlotte on Thursday, followed by a match against Wake Forest.

🔼 Off To The Races. Mississippi State cross country is set for a four-meet regular season before the SEC Championship starts the postseason in November. For the season opener, the Bulldogs will travel two hours north to Memphis, Tennessee, on Aug. 31, for the City Auto Memphis Twilight Classic. Two weeks later, on Sept. 13, State will travel to Huntsville, Alabama, for The Southern Showcase, where eight personal bests were set last season. The postseason kicks off for the Bulldogs in November, with the SEC Championship on Nov. 1.

🗣️ "I'm extremely excited about the upcoming season. We have most of our team returning from last year, as well as some freshmen that we are expecting to make an immediate impact. I was really excited with how we closed our season in 2023, improving upon our championship finishes from the season before.” - Chris Woods, head coach

🔼 Make It Known. The Bulldogs are expected to roll several running backs through to keep pace with Jeff Lebby's up-tempo offense with each guy bringing a little something different to the table, and running back Keyvone Lee broke out a boxing analogy to try and describe the skillsets he and his backfield mates have to offer.

🗣️ "We've got uppercuts, hooks, jabs – anything you want, we've got it. We've got power, speed, agility, elusiveness." - Keyvone Lee

Power is an attribute that Lee certainly has in his game. The 6-foot, 225-pounder is a physical runner who isn't afraid to lower his pads and punish defenders in his way and is constantly falling forward to gain extra yardage. The power back appeared in eight games for the Bulldogs in 2023 where he carried 12 times for 78 yards. He ripped off a season-long 33-yard run against Western Michigan and averaged 6.3 yards per attempt for the season despite only a handful of chances.

📚️ Read about Lee’s performance at camp this far and how he plans on making his name known this season

🤔 BULLDOG TRIVIA

Count ‘Em Up. Today’s trivia question…how many goals has Bulldog Soccer scored through two matches this season?

Think you got it? Scroll to the bottom of the Bulldog Brew to see if you know your stuff!

🤝 SHARE THE BREW

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📆 THE WEEK AHEAD

Thursday, August 22
⚽️ Soccer vs. Charlotte @ 6 p.m. in Charlotte, NC | Live Stats

Saturday, August 24
🏐 Volleyball vs. Memphis (Exhibition) @ 4 p.m. in Memphis, TN | Live Stats

Sunday, August 25
⚽️ Soccer vs. Wake Forest @ 1 p.m. in Winston-Salem, NC | Live Stats

🐶 Click here to see the full Mississippi State Athletics Calendar

🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Answer: Five!

In the season-opener, the Bulldogs took down Baylor 1-0 and followed that up with a four-goal shutout against Northwestern State on Sunday afternoon. Aitana Martinez-Montoya, Alivia Buxton, Ilana Izquierdo and Naila Schoefberger each have one goal apiece so far this season.

🐶 Have a great Tuesday, y'all!