Mississippi State gets leading rusher Fluff Bothwell back for Oklahoma

Mississippi State will have its leading rusher back for Saturday's game against Oklahoma. Running back Fluff Bothwell was taken off the SEC availability report Friday, as ClutchPoints reported, citing ESPN's Pete Thamel. The junior had been listed as questionable.

Bothwell has run for 403 yards and three touchdowns this season, more than anyone else on the roster. An ankle injury has limited him for most of a month. He had one carry for one yard in the loss to Alabama and then sat out the 31-0 loss at LSU. Mississippi State Bulldogs On SI reported that he watched that game from the sideline wearing a boot on his left foot. The program has not said exactly what the injury is. The outlet also noted that Friday's report is not binding and that the league's final availability report comes out Saturday.

The bigger question is still under center. Quarterback Kamario Taylor, who also missed the LSU game, was listed as questionable Friday with a foot injury. Thamel and On3's Pete Nakos reported that Taylor plans to try to play. ClutchPoints reported that linebacker Zakari Tillman and guard DJ Chester were also cleared after being listed as questionable. Safety Isaac Smith is out after getting hurt again at LSU. Linebacker Jalen Smith and receiver Ayden Williams remain unavailable, as do defensive tackles Trevion Williams and Diesel Moye. Ayden Williams, Trevion Williams and Moye have all been ruled out for the rest of the season.

What it means against Oklahoma

The Bulldogs need offense. They scored at least 31 points in each of their first four games and went 4-0, a run that included a 31-24 win over then-No. 19 Missouri and a 41-34 win at South Carolina. Then Taylor and Bothwell got hurt, and Mississippi State lost 56-23 to Alabama and was shut out at LSU, giving up 87 points while scoring 23 across the two games. The Bulldogs are 4-2 overall and 2-2 in the SEC.

Oklahoma arrives at 3-3, 1-2 in conference play, and has been hard to read. The Sooners beat then-No. 1 Texas 27-24, but they have scored 14 points or fewer in four of their six games, most recently a 21-13 home loss to Kentucky. Their only lopsided score came in a 51-0 opener against UTEP. If Bothwell can get a running game going, Mississippi State could keep this a low-scoring game without leaning entirely on a quarterback who may be limited.

This will be the first time the two programs have played each other in football. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. CT at Davis Wade Stadium on SEC Network.

Oklahoma is a slight road favorite on this site's board, which tracks 11 venues. On Novig, the Sooners are favored at -127 on the moneyline, and Mississippi State is +122. Novig has Oklahoma favored by 2.5 points at -102, with the Bulldogs +2.5 at even money. Novig puts the total at 47.5. The best price anywhere on the under is theScore Bet's -110 at 48.5, a point higher than Novig's number. Sportsbook hold on the moneyline ranges from 2.9% to 6.6% across venues, so how much a book keeps on this game depends a lot on where the price is posted. The game is close to a toss-up, and Saturday's final availability report, especially Taylor's status, is the news most likely to move the board before kickoff.