Relf Key for Mississippi State
Chris Relf is a dynamic player who can make plays with his arm and his legs, but he is in his third year as a starter so the Bulldog’s senior quarterback needs to be more efficient. Mississippi State is coming off of a great 9-4 season with losses only coming at the hands of Auburn, LSU, Alabama and Arkansas. It is hard to figure that the team should have won any of those games, but they need to win those types of games if they want to compete for an SEC West title.
Relf tucked the ball and ran 194 times in 2010. Those carries were often effective, but he could spend more time in the pocket and look for one of the most dangerous, and underappreciated, receivers in the SEC. A year ago Chad Bumphis caught just 44 passes for 634 yards and five touchdowns. Relf’s arm will not get stronger and physically he is pretty much the same player he has been in year’s past, but the Bulldogs hope he can make better decisions during his senior season.
Relf certainly does not force passes too often; he just gives up on plays a little too quickly and runs for a few yards instead. With his elusiveness, he can keep plays alive and still look down field for receivers, not just down field for open grass in front of him.
That all sounds nice, but this year might be a little different. If Relf felt the need to run away when he knew left tackle Derek Sherrod was protecting his back, what happens this year when James Cameron, a converted defensive tackle, or freshman Blaine Clausell is protecting his blindside? Relf will probably run more and one cannot blame him for that. Cameron and Clausell are not Sherrod and never will be during Relf’s senior season.
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