Chris Jans explains how Mississippi State will approach TCU game, second-half of SEC play

Mississippi State let a massive opportunity slip away in Tuscaloosa on Wednesday. After going up as much as 11 on the No. 2 team in the nation, they allowed Alabama to come back into the game and steal it from them in the end. Although it was a brutal punch, Chris Jans says he and the Bulldogs will have to regroup and regroup quickly.

Jans spoke about the mindset of his team moving forward after the 66-63 loss to the Tide. He said they can’t do anything else but reset and get ready for both No. 11 TCU this weekend as well as the second half of their SEC slate. To him, that’s the job they all signed up for and it’s just the way things go sometimes in athletics.

“It’s our job. That’s how it is,” said Jans. “We’re certainly gonna have to wear this one. It’s gonna be a long night. But we’ll start working on (TCU) on the bus ride home, or at least I will. The staff is obviously way ahead.”

“Tomorrow we’ll figure out a theme, get our guys off the mat, dust it off, and get their minds right. It’s just the way it is,” Jans said. “It’s just how college athletics work and team sport works. We don’t have time to walk in it. We’ve got to get out of it and move on.”

After starting 11-0, Mississippi State has had a brutal run over the last month plus of basketball. They now sit at 12-8 after a 1-8 stretch to end their non-conference schedule and open league play. While they’ve played and come up short against plenty of top competition in that time, it has taken all the wind out of their sails as they enter the month of February.

Still, there’s just no time for Jans or the Bulldogs to rest. They’ll get the Horned Frogs in their house tomorrow and after that will have 10, albeit easier, games left in the SEC. If Mississippi State wants to turn its season back around, it starts now and will take its best effort tomorrow afternoon against its Big 12 opponent.