By Elijah Klepczyk
Emmerich Newspapers
STARKVILLE – A clutch go-ahead touchdown from a budding star, three fourth-quarter stops, and of course 41,819 cowbells all crescendoed into Mississippi State football’s 31-24 win over Missouri last weekend.
The last Mississippi State SEC home win came on Nov. 5, 2022, and the Bulldogs hadn’t hosted a ranked opponent as a ranked team since 2017. Those long‑standing marks fell away Saturday, as MSU surged past the Tigers and pushed its record to 4‑0 overall and 2-0 in league play.
“That is an electric atmosphere," head coach Jeff Lebby said of the environment that engulfed Davis Wade Stadium on Saturday. He added that “our guys thrive in it,” and that the energy from the crowd helped his team come out with a victory.
State fans were clearly hungry for the win, with nearly everyone in white for the school’s “White Out,” the student section filling up 80 minutes before kickoff, and cowbells ringing from almost every corner of the stadium.
The Bulldog faithful also took part in a world‑record moment during the two‑minute timeout in the second quarter. The university reported that 41,819 fans rang their cowbells continuously for thirty seconds, setting a new Guinness world record.
“We are going to need it a week from today,” Lebby said of the great home-field advantage, as they will host the seventh-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide next week. Alabama will come into the game 4-0 as well, after its 49-18 dismantling of South Carolina last week.
The Tide will be led by sophomore quarterback Keelon Russell, who has been an explosive playmaker for Alabama thus far into the season. “He’s played really, really well,” Lebby said of Russell, adding that tackling and “moving him off of the spot,” will be vital to the Bulldogs success on Saturday.
State hasn’t beaten Alabama since 2007, when the Bulldogs knocked off the Tide 17‑12 — a game still remembered for Anthony Johnson’s 100‑yard pick‑six. Bama has beaten State 16 straight games since that fateful day.
“That means absolutely zero to me, or our guys,” Lebby said of the team's rough history with Alabama heading into this matchup. Players Anthony Evans III, Sam West, and Jett Jefferson echoed the sentiment, saying this is just another SEC game on the schedule.
Kickoff in Davis Wade is set for 11 a.m. and will be televised on ABC.
Things seemed dire against Missouri as Mississippi State found itself down by a touchdown going into the fourth quarter.
State had controlled most of the game up until this point, thanks to a fast 14-0 start in the first quarter on the back of a 43-yard touchdown pass from Kamario Taylor to Sanfrisco Magee, and another 11-yard pass to Fluff Bothwell. After that the offense would not find the endzone again until the fourth quarter.
The State defense was able to force a three and out to start the fourth and get the ball back on their own 27 yard line. The Bulldogs then put together a 14-play 73-yard drive that featured two third down conversions and one fourth down conversion that was capped off by a 4-yard rushing touchdown courtesy of Bothwell, who picked up 122 yards on 25 carries to cash in his third straight of more than 100 yards.
With the game tied at 24‑24, a State defense that had struggled to get off the field for much of the second half came up with another stop, forcing a Tiger punt and giving Taylor a chance to take the lead.
This time the Bulldogs drove the length of the field in just five plays, highlighted by a diving catch from Anthony Evans III for a 48-yard gain, and Taylor threading the needle to find Magee in the endzone for a 24-yard go-ahead touchdown. Taylor finished the night with 360 yards and three touchdowns, with Evans III finishing with eight catches for 114 yards.
That left it up to the retooled Zach Anrett led defense to find a way to keep Mizzou off the board with 3:50 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Tigers drove down the length of the field to set up first and 10 from the State 18 yard-line, in great position to tie the game. The Bulldogs defense bent, but didn’t break, as it held strong and turned the Tigers over on downs thanks to a big-time deflection from defensive lineman Will Whitson.
State ran the clock down and burned Missouri’s remaining timeouts, but the Tigers still had one last shot — a nearly 40‑yard Hail Mary that was knocked away by Kelly Jones, sealing the win for MSU.
