Mississippi State vs. Illinois Outback Bowl: Time, prediction, picks

Mississippi State football team will play in the ReliaQuest Bowl against Illinois on Jan. 2. The team decided to play this game in wake of Mike Leach's death on Dec. 13.

Mississippi State plays Illinois in the ReliaQuest Bowl.

The ReliaQuest Bowl is Tuesday, Jan. 2, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. Mississippi State will play Illinois in the Outback Bowl.

ESPN2 is airing the game between Mississippi State and Illinois.

Illinois is making its third bowl appearance in a decade. Mississippi State is going to play a high-scoring game.

Mississippi State and Illinois are playing in the ReliaQuest Bowl.

Mike Leach died on Dec. 13. Zach Arnett took over the team and will coach Mississippi State in the ReliaQuest Bowl.

Will Rogers threw for 3,713 yards and 34 touchdowns with just six interceptions in 566 passes this season. Five teammates accumulated between 44 and 50 receptions this year. Rogers completed better than 68 percent of his passes.

Nathaniel Watson leads Mississippi State in tackles with 108. Watson was one of the highlights in the November loss against No. 1 Georgia with 16 stops.

Illinois is playing in the Outback Bowl. The team won the regular-season finale against Northwestern. Mississippi State is a team that has struggled recently.

Chase Brown is the second-leading rusher in FBS with 1,643 yards and 10 touchdowns. He has gone over 100 yards in every game but two.

Tommy DeVito is starting for Illinois. DeVitto added 2,397 yards and 15 touchdowns through the air this season.

Illinois' defense is led by Jer’Zhan Newton and Keith Randolph. They have combined for 27 tackles for loss and 59 tackles.