The No. 24 Mississippi State Bulldogs beat No. 19 Missouri 31-24 in their own offensive game Saturday night, in Davis Wade Stadium.
The Tigers (3-1, 1-1 SEC) put together a strong offensive game behind Ole Miss transfers Austin Simmons and Cayden Lee, but the Bulldogs (4-0, 2-0 SEC) countered with nearly 500 yards of offense led by quarterback Kamario Taylor and running back Fluff Bothwell. The 60,417-packed stadium, which produced the most simultaneous cowbells ringing, scored 14 unanswered points and won its second SEC game for the first time since the late Mike Leach coached the Bulldogs five years ago.
After a trade of possessions to open the game, the Mississippi State defense forced a turnover on downs, followed by Taylor finding receiver Sanfrisco Magee for a 43-yard touchdown midway through the first quarter. After Missouri missed a 52-yard field goal, the Bulldogs capitalized, using 8 plays before Taylor found Bothwell for an 11-yard touchdown pass off a fake draw.
Missouri chipped away in the second quarter when placekicker Blake Craig converted a 35-yard field goal to put the Tigers on the scoreboard. Then, Taylor threw a midfield interception that Trajen Greco returned to the Bulldogs’ 27-yard line. The turnover set up a 9-yard touchdown pass from Simmons to Donovan Olugbode with 6:09 left in the second quarter.
Mississippi State had a failed possession at the end of the half, driving down to the red zone but ultimately unable to score because they failed to stop the clock, leaving the score at 14-10 in favor of the Bulldogs.
Coming out of the gates, Missouri took their first lead with quarterback Austin Simmons finding Cayden Lee for a 21-yard touchdown pass after a 7-play drive and a 17-14 score. Mississippi State Kicker Kyle Ferrie tied the game at 17 following a 15-play drive with 4:37 left in the third quarter, breaking the school record in field goals over former Bulldog Nick Fitzgerald in the process.
Missouri countered as wide receiver Cayden Lee caught yet another touchdown pass from Simmons, this time from 28 yards out. Fortunately for the Bulldogs, that was all the Tigers had left in the tank on offense.
The fourth quarter belonged to Mississippi State, as the Bulldogs scored on back-to-back possessions via a 4-yard dive from Bothwell and the second touchdown pass from Taylor to Magee with 3:57 left in the game. The Tigers made one last attempt, even getting the ball inside the red zone, before the Bulldogs forced a turnover on downs to seal the game.
After failing to get a first down and seal the game away, Missouri got another chance to tie it. However, questionable clock-management decisions by the Rebel transfer quarterback led to a desperate Hail Mary attempt as time expired, which Mississippi State batted down to secure the win.
“Our guys responded great despite their mistakes, and our loud fan base is what really helped us throughout the game,” said Lebby, who led the Bulldogs to win their first ranked-on-ranked matchup since the Dak Prescott era. “Missouri did a good job of changing up schemes and things we had to adjust to. We have to continue to take what defense gives us. There is so much to clean up, but our guys’ response has been phenomenal.”
The Numbers Never Lie
The Heisman-hopeful Bulldog quarterback threw for 360 yards on 27-of-38 passing with three touchdowns and an interception. Bothwell was the key playmaker on the ground, totaling 177 yards rushing and receiving on 31 touches and scoring twice. Anthony Evans led receivers with 114 yards on eight receptions, while Magee had 76 yards on three catches and a pair of touchdowns.
Defensively, the Bulldogs converted no turnovers, but had six tackles for loss and two sacks. Tyler Lockhart and Jarden Gilbert led Mississippi State in tackles with nine each, and Marcus Williams led with four solo tackles and a sack.
For Missouri, Simmons threw for 295 yards on 23-of-39 passes and three touchdowns, all three to Cayden Lee, who led the Tigers with 11 receptions for 156 yards and three scores.
Next Up
Mississippi State will host the top-ten Alabama Crimson Tide at 11 a.m. in Starkville. The game will be broadcast on ABC on ESPN and participating SuperTalk Mississippi stations.
