Wake Forest vs. Mississippi State: Previewing the 2011 Music City Bowl

A bowl matchup featuring two 6-6 teams isn't likely to draw a lot of eyes to television sets, but just because Wake Forest and Mississippi State finished with mediocre records in 2011 doesn't mean that this year's Music City Bowl isn't worth checking out. 

The Bulldogs and the Demon Deacons both possess the type of playmakers who are worth tuning in to see. 

Mississippi State RB Vick Ballard and Wake Forest WR Chris Givens were two of the most underrated players in the country this season, and both are capable of putting on a show. 

Ballard and Givens may be the big names, but there's plenty of talent on both squads, and this one has the ingredients to turn into a pretty competitive affair. 

Here's a look at what you need to know about the 2011 Music City Bowl. 

The Basic Details

Date: Dec. 30, 2011

Time: 6:40 pm ET

Channel: ESPN

The Spread: Mississippi State (-6.5)

Sponsor: Franklin American Mortgage

Conferences Represented: Mississippi State—SEC, Wake Forest—ACC

Stadium: LP Field

City: Nashville, Tennessee

Last Year's Result: North Carolina 30, Tennessee 30

Wake Forest's 2011 Resume

Overall Record: 6-6

Conference Record: 5-3

Sagarin Schedule Rank: 52

Who They Beat: North Carolina State (34-27), Gardner-Webb (48-5), Boston College (27-19), Florida State (35-30), Duke (24-23), Maryland (31-10)

Who Beat Them: Syracuse (36-29), Virginia Tech (38-17), North Carolina (49-24), Notre Dame (24-17), Clemson (31-28), Vanderbilt (41-7)

Mississippi State's 2011 Resume

Overall Record: 6-6

Conference Record: 2-6

Sagarin Schedule Rank: 27

Who They Beat: Memphis (59-14), Louisiana Tech (26-20), UAB (21-3), Kentucky (28-16), Tennessee-Martin (55-17), Ole Miss (31-3)

Who Beat Them: Auburn (41-34), LSU (19-6), Georgia (24-10), South Carolina (14-12), Alabama (24-7), Arkansas (44-17)

Wake Forest by the Numbers

Offense

Points Per Game: 26.8

Yards Per Game: 374

Passing Yards Per Game: 255

Rushing Yards Per Game: 119

Yards Per Play: 5.3

Defense

Points Per Game: 27.8

Yards Per Game: 399

Passing Yards Per Game: 236

Rushing Yards Per Game: 163

Yards Per Play: 5.5

Special Teams

Field Goal Percentage: 80 percent

Yards Per Punt: 39

Yards Per Kick Return: 19.9 

Yards Per Punt Return: 6.8

Key Numbers

Turnovers (Gained vs. Lost): 17-12 

Third-Down Conversions: 37 percent

Red-Zone Percentage: 83 percent

Mississippi State by the Numbers

Offense

Points Per Game:  25.5

Yards Per Game: 355

Passing Yards Per Game: 169

Rushing Yards Per Game: 186

Yards Per Play: 5.3

Defense

Points Per Game: 19.9

Yards Per Game: 356

Passing Yards Per Game: 195

Rushing Yards Per Game: 161

Yards Per Play: 4.8

Special Teams

Field Goal Percentage: 61 percent

Yards Per Punt: 41.8

Yards Per Kick Return: 17.7 

Yards Per Punt Return: 12

Key Numbers

Turnovers (Gained vs. Lost): 20-16

Third-Down Conversions: 38 percent

Red-Zone Percentage: 86 percent

Wake Forest's Key Player: WR Chris Givens

Mississippi State DT Fletcher Cox may be the true standout NFL prospect to watch in this game, but another player who will be playing on Sundays some day is Wake Forest WR Chris Givens. 

Givens really opened a lot of peoples' eyes in 2011, as he hauled in 74 passes for 1,276 yards and scored nine touchdowns. 

One of the interesting matchups to watch in this game will be Givens going up against Mississippi State CB Johnathan Banks, another player that has an NFL future. 

If the 6'0" 195-pound junior has a big day against the Bulldogs secondary, it will definitely boost his already escalating pro stock, and he might even think about making the jump to the NFL a year early.

Mississippi State's Key Player: RB Vick Ballard

Alabama's Trent Richardson hogged most of the attention in the SEC this year, but he wasn't the only back in the conference who made an impact this season.

Mississippi State's Vick Ballard, a former JUCO transfer, was once again the key weapon for Dan Mullen's offense in 2011, as he broke the 1000-yard rushing mark and scored nine touchdowns. 

The 5'11'' 220-pound senior isn't the flashiest back around, and he doesn't come up with many highlight-reel worthy runs, but what Ballard does do is use his big, strong frame to physically wear down a defense for four quarters. 

Ballard averaged 5.6 yards per carry in the fourth quarter this year, and he's the type of big back who seems to get stronger as the game goes on.

Breakdown/Prediction

Mississippi State was one of those mediocre teams this year that wasn't as truly mediocre as its record may suggest. Out of the six teams that the Bulldogs lost to this year, five of them—Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, LSU and South Carolina—were ranked in the Top 15 at some point during the season.

Dan Mullen's squad played both Alabama and LSU relatively tough this year, but it was obvious that the Bulldogs didn't have the depth to hang with either of them for a whole game. 

Wake Forest, on the other hand, surprised a lot of people by starting 5-2, but a 1-4 swoon against tougher competition to end the year brought the Demon Deacons back down to earth.

Now both teams will go into this game, looking to notch their seventh win and finish the season above .500. 

On paper, Mississippi State has more talent on both sides of the ball, but the interesting player to watch will be QB Chris Relf. He lost his starting job to Tyler Russell during the season, but gained it back by default for this game, because Russell's banged up.

Relf looked like he was in store for a promising senior season this year, but early struggles forced Mullen to turn to his young sophomore signal-caller instead. 

If Relf finally plays up to his potential, the Mississippi State offense should get rolling, but if he struggles, QB Tanner Price, WR Chris Givens and the Wake Forest offense are definitely capable of capitalizing. 

I think in the end though, the Bulldogs are more athletic and more talented overall, and their skill advantage will ultimately be the difference in this game. 

Prediction: Mississippi State 30, Wake Forest 21