STARKVILLE — It took two questions.
That’s how long Mississippi State football coach Dan Mullen had to wait Saturday following his team’s 51-0 win against Vanderbilt to answer questions about the Bulldogs’ next game against Ole Miss in Oxford.
“That’s the big one, one of the games we look forward to all year,” Mullen said. “It’s pretty much our biggest game every year, and we have the countdown clock for it. It’s for bragging rights in this state, and that means something.”
This year, it may mean more than ever for the Bulldogs. At 10-1, MSU will find out tomorrow if it will remain in the No. 4 spot in the College Football Playoff Selection Committee’s weekly rankings. The top four teams spot will qualify for the first Football Bowl Subdivision playoff. But with one-loss teams like TCU, Ohio State, and Baylor knocking on the door, every win helps MSU. A loss would end MSU’s national championship hopes.
Against Vanderbilt, those aspirations looked very much in tact. The Bulldogs more than doubled the Commodores in total yards (502-228) and were never challenged.
Junior quarterback Dak Prescott played his best game in weeks, accounting for 223 yards and four touchdowns, the sixth time in his career he has scored at least four touchdowns. He had touchdowns passes of 27 yards to Joe Morrow, 13 yards to Josh Robinson, and 9 yards to senior tight end Malcolm Johnson. It was a statement performance for Prescott, who was one week removed from throwing three interceptions in a 25-20 loss at Alabama.
“That’s what we wanted to do, come out and show how hungry we were after that loss,” said Prescott, who threw for 193 yards and ran for a 30-yard touchdown. “We just had to respond, and that’s just what we did on offense and defense. It was a complete team game.”
The victory was MSU’s second shutout of the season. A 49-0 victory against Southern Mississippi in the opener is the other. Against Vanderbilt, MSU forced three turnovers and turned one — a 51-yard fumble return by linebacker Christian Holmes — into a touchdown. It was MSU’s first game forcing multiple turnovers since a 38-23 win against Auburn six weeks ago.
“We were kind of in a slump defensively as far as turnovers,” Mullen said. “But once we got that first one, they just started to come after that.”
While the win gave MSU its first 10-win regular season in school history, perhaps the biggest result was MSU recaptured momentum seven days after its first loss. It will try to maintain that momentum against Ole Miss, which fell to No. 18 in The Associated Press Top 25 after a 30-0 loss at Arkansas.
“It’s a big momentum swing for us,” MSU guard Ben Beckwith said. “We were kind of in a lull. I wouldn’t say we were playing bad, but we weren’t playing like we were (earlier this season). We had the loss last week and it was a tough game, but we played well in the second half. I think that carried over into today.”
Mullen said the game against Ole Miss is another chance to make history. A win would give MSU an 11-win regular season for the first time, and it would keep the Bulldogs in contention for the Southeastern Conference title and a run at a national championship.
A victory also would continue Mullen’s dominance in the series. The sixth-year head coach has won four of his first five games in the series.
“I don’t think they like me too much in Oxford,” Mullen said. “I don’t know why. I think I’m a nice guy.”
MSU still No. 4
For the eighth week in row, MSU is in the top four nationally. That became official Sunday, as the Bulldogs came in at No. 4 in the Amway Coaches Poll (USA Today) at 11 a.m. Two hours later, MSU found itself at No. 4 in The AP poll.
In both polls, MSU trails Alabama, Florida State, and Oregon, the same teams that are ranked ahead of it in the College Football Playoff Selection Committee’s rankings. The new playoff rankings will be unveiled at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Brandon Walker on Twitter @BWonStateBeat
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