Mississippi State will have a chance to make amends for its ugliest loss of 2021.
And the Bulldogs will have to go through Mike Leach’s former team to do it.
MSU (7-5, 4-4 Southeastern Conference) will play Texas Tech (6-6, 3-6 Big 12) in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl at 5:45 p.m. Dec. 28 in Memphis, Tennessee. The Bulldogs are playing in a bowl game for the 12th straight season.
“We’re looking forward to competing against a quality Texas Tech team in the Liberty Bowl,” Leach said in a news release. “All year long, our team has improved week by week and this gives our program the chance to continue getting better. We’re looking forward to both the preparation for the Liberty Bowl and the game itself.”
The Bulldogs will return to the site of their Sept. 18 loss to Memphis by a 31-29 score, a defeat marred by a controversial non-call on a fourth-quarter punt return score by the Tigers. The loss likely kept Mississippi State out of a higher-tier bowl game and sent the Bulldogs right back to Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium.
The game will be televised on ESPN.
Mississippi State will face off with a Texas Tech team that fired coach Matt Wells after a 4-4 start to the season and hired Baylor assistant Joey McGuire to replace Wells. Interim coach Sonny Cumbie will lead Tech into the bowl game, though.
The Red Raiders won two of their last four games and came close to upsetting eventual Big 12 champion Baylor on Nov. 27.
Texas Tech ranks No. 60 in ESPN’s Football Power Index. The Red Raiders’ offense ranks No. 60 in the country, while their defense ranks No. 91.
Leach went 84-43 in 10 seasons with the Red Raiders, coaching in Lubbock from 2000 to 2009. He owns the second-best winning percentage of any full-time head football coach in Texas Tech history.
Mississippi State will play in the Liberty Bowl for the fifth time in school history. The Bulldogs beat UCF 10-7 in the 2007 edition of the contest, their first bowl appearance since 2000.
MSU also played in the Liberty Bowl in 1963 — when it was still in Philadelphia — 1991 and 2013.
“We’re thrilled to welcome back the Mississippi State Bulldogs to the AutoZone Liberty Bowl for the first time in eight years,” Executive Director of the AutoZone Liberty Bowl Steve Ehrhart said. “Coach Mike Leach’s ‘Air Raid’ offense is one of the most exciting in the country and the match-up against Texas Tech will be one of the most compelling games of the entire bowl season. The Bulldogs and their passionate fans set the AutoZone Liberty Bowl’s all-time attendance record in 2007, and we look forward to having them in this year’s AutoZone Liberty Bowl.”
Mississippi State is 14-10 all time in bowl games. Most recently, the Bulldogs beat No. 24 Tulsa 28-26 in last year’s Armed Forces Bowl.
“We’re excited to be headed to a postseason game for the 12th straight year and looking forward to playing in the Liberty Bowl,” Athletic Director John Cohen said. “To have this opportunity is a credit to the hard work of our coaches, players and support staff, and we look forward to taking the field in front of our loyal Bulldog fans one more time in 2021.”
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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