STARKVILLE — Through sly grins and rehearsed answers Saturday night, Mississippi State’s football players downplayed talk of No. 3 MSU being named the No. 1 team in the country after a 38-23 victory against No. 2 Auburn at Davis Wade Stadium.
By Sunday afternoon, those grins likely had turned into huge smiles.
For the first time in program history, MSU became the nation’s No. 1 team in both major polls, first in the Amway Coaches Poll (USA Today) just before noon and then by The Associated Press Top 25 just before 1 p.m.
“It just means we will have to work harder,” said MSU wide receiver De’Runnya Wilson, the team’s leading pass catcher who had four catches for 72 yards and a touchdown against Auburn. “Will it be great? Yes, but it’s not going to stop us from chasing our ultimate goal, which is a championship.”
That goal seems more attainable than ever before in Starkville, where the nation’s top college football team now resides. In The AP poll, MSU overwhelmed previous No. 1 Florida State for the top spot. Entering the week two poll points ahead of Auburn, FSU watched as MSU soared into the top spot, as 45 of 60 AP voters gave the Bulldogs the nod on top.
By Sunday afternoon, several of those voters explained why they chose the Bulldogs, who have won nine-straight games.
“Quality wins made my decision,” said Adam Sparks, the Vanderbilt beat writer for The Tennessean in Nashville, Tennessee. “Beating LSU, Texas A&M, and especially Auburn in three-straight games made up my mind.
“I voted Florida State No. 1 from the preseason until last week because I felt no team had racked up enough quality wins to overtake it. To this point, I think only two teams have done that — Mississippi State and Ole Miss. The Bulldogs barely jumped over Ole Miss in my poll.”
Reached by The Dispatch late Sunday afternoon and into Sunday night, each beat writer polled pointed to MSU’s stretch of big-time wins as their reasons for anointing it the country’s best team.
In the past four week, which included a bye, MSU has beaten then-No. 8 LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, crushed then-No. 6 Texas A&M at home, and pasting an Auburn team that played for the Bowl Championship Series National Championship a season ago.
“I voted Mississippi State No. 1 because of the quality of its wins,” said Eric Avidon, the Boston College beat writer for the MetroWest Daily News in Massachusetts. “To beat LSU on the road, and then Texas A&M and Auburn at home — decisively — speaks volumes about the caliber of Mississippi State’s team this year. Ole Miss, to me, is a close second with wins over Alabama and Texas A&M in successive weeks, but it doesn’t quite match what the Bulldogs have done over three successive weeks.”
Avidon wasn’t the only voter who had a hard time deciding between MSU and Ole Miss, which are 6-0 and 3-0 in the Southeastern Conference.
“I was really torn between Mississippi State and Ole Miss for the No. 1 spot,” said Bil Rabinowitz, the Ohio State beat writer for The Dispatch in Columbus, Ohio. “I was tempted to knock them down a peg for (their non-conference schedule). But beating LSU, Texas A&M, and Auburn when all three were in the top 10 was enough for me to give them the nod. The fact that Alabama struggled against Arkansas took a slight amount of the heft from Ole Miss’s win over the Crimson Tide as well. As for Florida State, the Seminoles’ schedule doesn’t compare with what MSU has faced the last three weeks, and they haven’t been as dominant as I thought they’d be.”
Of the 60 voters, 12 voted for FSU No. 1, and three picked Ole Miss.
In the aftermath of his third huge win in a row, Mullen had no problem discussing the possibility of the lofty ranking.
“If we don’t get better from today, we’re not going to win too many more games,” Mullen said. “The rankings are cool, but it’s really irrelevant to our goals. You know who’s going to love it? Our fan base. They will really enjoy it. But, ultimately, if we are ranked No. 1, I’ll be happy, and I’ll think it’s the coolest thing in the world. But I’ll still be at work tomorrow at noon breaking down film of this game and getting ready for the next one.”
Not every voter pegged MSU as the country’s best team. Two writers had MSU at No. 3 and one, Garry Smits of the Times Union in Jacksonville, Florida, slotted the Bulldogs at No. 6 behind FSU, Baylor, Ole Miss, Notre Dame, and Michigan State. Up until last week, MSU had never been ranked as high as No. 6 in The AP poll. By this weekend, that was the new base line for a program that’s in unchartered territory. Smits explained his reasoning Sunday night.
“I think Nos. 1-5 are better teams,” Smits said. “Not much more to it than that. The AP poll is opinion, opinion formed by observation, research, and calculation. It’s also become pretty meaningless, with the CFB playoffs coming up, so I think fan bases getting too high or too upset with their team’s standing should probably take a deep breath.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Brandon Walker on Twitter @BWonStateBeat
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
