Gold standard

Mississippi State Coach Joe Moorhead, who came to Starkville, Miss., this season after being the coach at Fordham and offensive coordinator at Penn State, will play Alabama for the first time Saturday.

“We talk all the time here in our building with our kids about the term ‘championship standard,’ ” Moorhead said at his weekly news conference.. “Quite frankly, this is what we’re chasing.

“Alabama is the gold standard in this league. I told our team that no one falls to the top of the mountain. Those guys have worked their tails off and have earned the right to be there and it’s our job to try to go up there and knock them off.”