Mississippi State: 2023 ReliaQuest Bowl Champions

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Massimo Biscardi made a 27-yard tiebreaking field goal with four seconds left, Marcus Banks returned a fumble 60 yards for a touchdown on the game's last play and No. 24 Mississippi State rallied to beat Illinois 19-10 in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Monday in the Bulldogs' first game since coach Mike Leach's death.

Banks' score came on Illinois' fifth lateral following a completed pass after the Fighting Ilini got the ball at their own 29. There was a scrum on the field as the game ended, but order was restored after a couple of minutes.

Will Rogers was 29 of 44 yards for 261 yards and one touchdown for Mississippi State (9-4, No. 22 CFP).

Tommy DeVito completed 23 of 34 passes for 253 yards for Illinois (8-5).

Reggie Love III rushed for 53 yards on 12 carries for Illinois. Fighting Illini running back Chase Brown, the nation’s second-leading rusher in the regular season with 1,643 yards, sat out to prepare for the NFL draft.

Mississippi State was held without a touchdown until the first play of the fourth quarter, when Rogers connected on an eight-yard throw to Justin Robinson that tied the game at 10.

The Bulldogs averaged 32.7 points during the regular season.

Illinois, which entered allowing 12.3 points and held six opponents to under 10 points, played without defensive backs Devon Witherspoon and Sydney Brown. Both opted out ahead of the NFL draft.

DeVito put Illinois up 7-0 on a two-yard run with 2:49 left in the second quarter.

Mississippi State responded with a 38-yard field goal by Biscardi with nine seconds to go in the first half.

IIlinois went up 10-3 on a 52-yard field goal by Caleb Griffin midway through the third.

Mississippi State was limited to 50 yards on its first three possessions, while the next two ended on interceptions by Matthew Bailey and Kendall Smith.

Illinois tops the nation with 24 interceptions.

HONORING MIKE

Among the tributes to Leach, who died on Dec. 12 due to complications from a heart condition, was “MIKE” with a pirate logo as part of the “I” painted between the 20 and 30 on one segment of the field.

The Mississippi State band spelled out “LEACH" before a moment of silence was held before the game.

The Bulldogs had a pirate flag instead of the school logo on their helmets. Illinois’ helmet had a logo similar to what was painted on the field.

Leach’s nickname was “The Pirate.”

UP NEXT

Mississippi State: Opens the 2023 regular-season on Sept. 2 against Southeastern Louisiana.

Illinois: Hosts Toledo on Sept. 2.

Mississippi State: 2020 Armed Forces Bowl Champions

While Mississippi State defeated No. 24 Tulsa, 28–26, on Thursday afternoon, the final seconds of the Armed Forces Bowl saw a violent brawl take place between the two teams.

The teams met on the field following an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against Mississippi State, which came during a late onside kick from Tulsa. Players from both teams congregated on two distinct sides when a Mississippi State player punched a Tulsa player.

That punch led to a spiral of players from both sides scrapping with each other, and Bulldogs wide receiver Malik Heath kicked Tulsa senior safety Tieneal Martin.

Tyler Horka of The Clarion Ledger reported that Heath posted an Instagram video praising himself for the act and joked about it with his teammates in the locker room.

Then, according to a tweet posted by Heath, he felt like he was defending himself during the brawl. 

As the brawl continued down the field, players continued to punch and hit each other.

Tulsa sophomore safety Kendarin Ray was helped off the field after being injured during the postgame brawl. It is not certain what started the brawl. 

Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach said in a postgame interview on ESPN that he was not exactly sure what caused the brawl.

"There was something before the game, too," Leach said.

When asked what Leach would say to his players following the brawl, Leach said, "don't do it anymore".

"It is dumb and the root of it's dumb no matter what the root of it is," Leach said. "The root of it is dumb and the continuation of it is dumb. Now where the dumb started, I'm not entirely sure. It was some of that going back and forth in the game. This is a football game, we are not going to tear cloth and I am not going to lose my mind over it."

Tulsa and its conference, the AAC, later said they would review the incident.

"We take this incident very seriously and will respond appropriately after the review is complete," Tulsa said in a statement.

AAC commissioner Mike Aresco added: "We will work with the University of Tulsa to conduct a thorough review of the altercation pursuant to our Conference Code of Sportsmanship process and expect that the university will respond accordingly."

The incident marks the biggest postgame bowl fight since the infamous Miami Beach Bowl brawl that took place in 2014 when Memphis and BYU played against each other.

With the victory, Mississippi State (4-7) earned its fourth win of the 2020 season and its 14th bowl win in school history.

Mississippi State: 2017 TaxSlayer Bowl Champions

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- It likely was Lamar Jackson's farewell performance.

It definitely was Keytaon Thompson's coming-out party.

Thompson, a highly touted freshman making his first start in place of injured quarterback Nick Fitzgerald, ran for 147 yards and three touchdowns to help No. 24 Mississippi State beat Jackson and Louisville 31-27 in the TaxSlayer Bowl on Saturday.

"He was phenomenal," Bulldogs interim coach Greg Knox said.

Thompson completed 11 of 20 passes for 127 yards, with an interception. He was more effective as a runner, carrying on 27 of the team's 55 running plays.

"We knew that's what he did best," Knox said. "If you go back and look at Mississippi State over the year, when Nick Fitzgerald ran the ball for a hundred yards, we were winning games. So we knew he had to run the ball today.

"We didn't care if he was a freshman. We didn't care if he was starting his first game. We knew we could scheme some things up for him to run the ball, and he could have success."

Thompson scored twice in the fourth quarter, including a 1-yard plunge with 3:39 remaining that put the Bulldogs (9-4) ahead for good.

Jackson had the Cardinals (8-5) on the move late, but safety Mark McLaurin intercepted his third pass of the game. Jackson got another chance in the waning seconds following a failed, fourth-down conversation. But his desperation heave was batted away in the end zone.

That set off a wild and tearful celebration for Mississippi State, which stuck together despite losing coach Dan Mullen and a number of assistants to Florida. Knox got doused on the sideline. Players ripped off jerseys in 50-degree temperatures and danced in the end zone.

"The last three, four weeks we've been together, it's been a tough time for everyone," Knox said. "A lot of emotions. ... I think that's what you saw on the field. It was a chance for everyone to just breathe a sigh of relief and say, `Thank you God for this win."

Jackson, the 2016 Heisman Trophy winner, had different emotions after probably ending his college career with a loss. Jackson has yet to declare for the NFL draft, but most outsiders believe the dynamic junior will turn pro.

"I got to sit down with my coach and my family," he said.

If he is leaving, he went out setting records.

Jackson ran 24 times for 158 yards and a touchdown, breaking the TaxSlayer Bowl record for most rushing yards by a quarterback. West Virginia's Pat White set the previous mark with 145 yards in 2007. He also broke his own school records for rushing yards and yards from scrimmage.

He had the longest run of his career, a 75-yarder late in the second quarter, and a 13-yard TD scamper earlier in the game in which he split two defenders and made another look silly . He also had a flip pass to Jaylen Smith for a score.

But his interceptions overshadowed his improvisations.

Jackson completed 13 of 31 passes for 171 yards, with two touchdowns, four picks and six sacks. He threw just six interceptions in the regular season.

Still, he became the third player in Football Bowl Subdivision history with at least 50 touchdown passes and 50 touchdown runs, joining Florida's Tim Tebow and Nevada's Colin Kaepernick.

"I'd love to see him come back, there's no question about that," Louisville coach Bobby Petrino said. "He really needs to understand where his draft status is, what the finances are that go with that. Him and his mom, we'll get people around him to help him make the decision.

"But they just need to make an educated business decision."

TAKEAWAY

Louisville: Jackson has to become a more accurate passer to make it in the NFL. He had way too many errant throws, including on two of his interceptions.

Mississippi State: New coach Joe Moorhead will have a chance to win games early thanks to what Mullen built in Starkville.


RARE FEAT

It was the fourth time in the FBC this season that both starting quarterbacks topped 100 yards rushing.

UP NEXT

Louisville: Freshman Jawon Pass is the obvious choice to replace Jackson. If so, he will be thrown into the fire right away because the Cardinals open next season against perennial power Alabama in Orlando on Sept. 1.

Mississippi State: Moorhead inherits an experienced defense and an offense expected to return a number of starters, including Fitzgerald and running back Aeris Williams. The Bulldogs open next season against Stephen F. Austin on Sept. 1.

Mississippi State: 2016 St. Petersburg Bowl Champions

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Mississippi State's sideline erupted in celebration, relieved to escape with a victory to end a challenging season.

Nick Fitzgerald rushed for 142 yards and two touchdowns in another strong performance by the dual-threat quarterback; however, the heavily favored Bulldogs had to block a field goal in the closing seconds to hold off Miami (Ohio) 17-16 in the St. Petersburg Bowl on Monday.

"Great game. Not exactly how we drew it up," coach Dan Mullen said after defensive tackle Nelson Adams got a hand on Nick Dowd's potential game-winning kick that would have helped Miami finish a stunning turnaround from a 0-6 start to the season to a winning record.

Instead, both the Bulldogs (6-7) and the RedHawks (6-7), who won six straight games to become bowl eligible , finished with losing marks.

"You know what, it's been an interesting year. We've battled. Throughout the year we've lost some tough games on the final play of the game," Mullen said. "I told the guys in the locker room afterward, we're here because we didn't give up. We found a way to go make that final play. Even though we missed a lot of opportunities, we made the final play when it mattered."

Fitzgerald, who led the Southeastern Conference in total offense, scored on runs of 2 and 44 yards on the way to his eighth 100-yard rushing performance of the season. The redshirt sophomore also completed 13 of 26 passes for 126 yards.

Gus Ragland threw for 257 yards and two touchdowns for Miami. He also threw his first interception of the season early in the fourth quarter, and Mississippi State turned the mistake into a 36-yard field goal that put the Bulldogs ahead with 12:03 remaining.

"We were one play ahead of them for most of the game, if not more than one, but they were one play ahead of us at the end," Miami coach Chuck Martin said. "We had opportunities. When you look at it, it didn't need to come down to that last kick, but it did. They made one more play than us. Tough way to end. That's sports, and that's competition."

The RedHawks drove the ball deep into Bulldogs territory on their next two possessions, turning the ball over on downs at the Mississippi State 32 midway through the fourth quarter and reaching the 17 before Dowd had his kick blocked with 5 seconds left.

James Gardner and Ryan Smith caught TD passes for Miami, which also had an extra-point blocked in the opening half.

"We had noticed on film that the kicker kind of did line drives. All that was going through my head was get your hands up as quick as you can," Adams said. "It's been a tough year for us. The only thing going through my mind was make a play, make something happen, and that's what I did."

TAKEAWAY

While there's a tendency to minimize the importance of games played before New Year's weekend, Mississippi State and Miami both felt fortunate to be in St. Petersburg for Christmas. The Bulldogs had a losing record for the first time since 2009 -- Mullen's first season in Starkville -- but qualified for a postseason berth because of the program's NCAA Academic Progress Rate.

Miami's rebound from a poor start was one of the feel-good stories of the year. Finishing in a bowl game against an SEC opponent attracted additional national attention for the RedHawks and also figures to help in recruiting.

"Like I told the guys a couple of weeks ago, if we invited Mississippi State down to spring practice to scrimmage us for 60 minutes, I don't think they'd come. So a pretty good opportunity for Miami football to play Mississippi State and go against some guys that don't look like the guys we normally go against," Martin said. "I thought our kids definitely took advantage of that and made the most of today."

PERSEVERANCE

Miami became the first team in NCAA history to start 0-6 and finish the regular season 6-6. The senior class that entered school in 2013 had a 5-37 record before the RedHawks began their six-game winning streak in mid-October.

"They should put statues of those guys outside of our stadium," Ragland said.

UP NEXT


Miami: The turnaround following the 0-6 start carried the RedHawks to a share of the MAC East Division title and provides a solid foundation to build on next season with 13 starters returning, including Ragland. Gardner had an outstanding sophomore season as well, finishing with 45 receptions for 750 yards and six TDs.

Mississippi State: Despite finishing with a losing record for only the second time in eight seasons under Mullen, the Bulldogs think they have a promising future with Fitzgerald at quarterback. In addition to throwing for 2,413 yards and 21 touchdowns, the sophomore rushed for 1,385 yards and 16 TDs after beginning his career as a backup behind Dak Prescott.

Mississippi State Bulldogs: 2015 Belk Bowl Champions

There was no better way for Dak Prescott to go out.

The star Mississippi State quarterback, who led his team to the Orange Bowl last season, got his second bowl win with a 51-28 win over NC State in the Belk Bowl.

MSU jumped out to a 21-0 lead, and although it got a scare from NC State in the second quarter, the Bulldogs just kept scoring, eventually blowing out the Wolfpack.

Prescott finished the game 25-for-42 passing, with 380 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. He also rushed 12 times for 47 yards. That comes after a regular season in which he completed 66.9 percent of his passes for 3,413 yards, and passed for 7.8 yards per attempt and 25 touchdowns to just four interceptions all season. He also rushed for 541 yards and 10 touchdowns.

That caps off a career that few would have qualms saying is the best in Mississippi State history, both from a statistical standpoint and from a program-building standpoint.

Mississippi State is a tough place to win, sitting in the stacked SEC West. It's not a traditional powerhouse, and it has to recruit against Alabama, Auburn, LSU, and Ole Miss. But history be damned, Prescott single-handedly made this team a factor in the SEC West over the past two season. Last year, he had the Bulldogs ranked as the No. 1 team in the country and got them to the Orange Bowl. This year, they won nine games again.

Coach Dan Mullen had already begun turning around the Mississippi State program, but Prescott elevated it. The Orange Bowl berth was the first since 1940. The last time the Bulldogs finished as high as they did in AP Poll, 11th, was also 1940. And this is the first time Mississippi State has ever won at least nine games two seasons in a row.

That's mostly due to Prescott, who was overlooked for his greatness because of all the big names around him in the SEC. He was an incredibly efficient and accurate passer, and he was a true dual-threat quarterback, as he could run just as well as he threw the ball.

At 6-foot-2, 230 pounds, Prescott could be a very good pro prospect. He's accurate, has a big arm and can play within the offense while also making things happen with his feet when the initial play breaks down. NFL Draft Scout ranks him as the third best quarterback in the upcoming NFL Draft.

While Prescott should have a nice career in the NFL, this game was a celebration of his college career. And the best player in the history of Mississippi State football proved why he has that title.

Mississippi State: 2013 Liberty Bowl Champions

MEMPHIS (AP) — Dak Prescott threw three touchdown passes and ran for two more scores and Mississippi State trounced Rice 44-7 on Tuesday in the most one-sided Liberty Bowl victory in the game's 55-year history.

Mississippi State (7-6) wrapped up its fourth straight winning season and prevented Rice (10-4) from winning bowl games in back-to-back years for the first time. By accounting for five touchdowns, Prescott set a Liberty Bowl record.

After falling behind 7-0, the Bulldogs scored touchdowns on four consecutive possessions.

Mississippi State's Jameon Lewis caught nine passes for 220 yards to break the Liberty Bowl receiving record held by Houston's Vincent Marshall, who had 201 yards in a 44-36 loss to South Carolina in 2006. Lewis also set the school single-game record.

Prescott was 17 of 28 for 283 yards and also ran for 78 yards on 14 carries.

Prescott's performance delighted a partisan crowd of 57,846 and capped a triumphant late-season performance amid personal tragedy for the sophomore quarterback, whose mother, Peggy, died of cancer in November.

Prescott came off the bench in the fourth quarter to lead Mississippi State to a 17-10 overtime victory over Ole Miss that made the Bulldogs bowl eligible. He then delivered arguably the finest performance of his career Tuesday on a day when he knew the offense would be resting on his shoulders.

Although Prescott and senior Tyler Russell had shared quarterback duties throughout the regular season, Prescott had the job to himself in the Liberty Bowl while Russell recovered from surgery to repair a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder. Prescott responded better than anyone could have reasonably imagined.

Rice took an early lead on Charles Ross' 1-yard touchdown run in the first quarter after the Owls recovered a fumble at the Mississippi State 47. The Bulldogs dominated from that point on.

Mississippi State responded to Rice's early score by producing touchdowns on each of its next four possessions to grab a 27-7 halftime lead. Prescott threw touchdown passes to LaDarius Perkins, Malcolm Johnson and Artimus Samuel in the first half. Prescott added two touchdown runs in the third quarter.

Rice's offense simply couldn't keep up that pace.

The Owls had won the Conference USA title - their first outright league championship of any kind since 1957 - by relying on a rushing attack that was ranked 16th among all Football Bowl Subdivision teams. Rice had shown it could run the ball against SEC competition by rushing for 306 yards on 51 carries in a season-opening 52-31 loss to Texas A&M.

Mississippi State stopped that Rice rushing attack in its tracks.