Mississippi: State of wins
STARKVILLE, Miss. — Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen grinned broadly as he walked off the field, pumping his fist with one arm while holding his daughter Breelyn in the other. The deafening roar of the crowd’s trademark cowbells showered the field and the players danced around in celebration.
The biggest home game in Mississippi State history had just turned into its biggest victory. Dak Prescott ran for two touchdowns and threw for another to lead No. 3 Mississippi State over No. 2 Auburn 38-23 on Saturday at Davis Wade Stadium.
Prescott, who jumped into the Heisman Trophy conversation last weekend with a breakout game against Texas A&M, turned in another solid performance. He completed 18 of 34 passes for 246 yards while running for 121 yards.
He also had lots of help. Josh Robinson ran for 97 yards and two touchdowns, De’Runnya Wilson caught four passes for 72 yards, including a 34-yard touchdown catch, and the Bulldogs defense bailed out the offense with red zone stops following turnovers.
“Every time we needed to make a play, a guy stepped up and made a play,” Mullen said. “We always wondered how to take the next step in this league ... that’s it.”
Mississippi State (6-0, 3-0 SEC) has won nine straight games going back to last season. Auburn (5-1, 2-1), the defending SEC champion, lost for the first time since last
season’s national championship game.
OLE MISS 35, TEXAS A&M 20
Bo Wallace ran for two scores and threw a touchdown pass and Mississippi’s defense added two scores to help the third- ranked Rebels remain undefeated victory over No. 14 Texas A&M in College Station, Tex.
Mississippi followed up last week’s victory over Alabama by picking up its first victory over A&M in the seventh meeting.
Wallace gave Mississippi (6-0, 3-0 SEC) an early lead with touchdown runs on consecutive possession in the first quarter. Cody Prewitt returned an interception 75 yards for a score in the second quarter to make it 21-0.
A&M (5-2, 2-2) cut it to 14 in the third quarter, but Wallace answered with 33-yard touchdown pass and Mississippi padded the lead with a fumble return for a TD early in the fourth quarter.
Kenny Hill threw for 401 yards and two touchdowns, but also had two interceptions and a fumble for the Aggies, who lost for the second straight week after opening the season 5-0.
The crowd of 110,633, that included Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt, was the largest to see a football game in the state of Texas and the most in SEC history.
The Rebels have forced at least one turnover in 29 straight games, the second-longest streak in the FBS.
Texas A&M entered the game averaging 47.8 points, which ranks third in the nation, but had trouble moving the ball until the fourth quarter against a Mississippi defense that entered the game allowing just 10.2 points a game. —AP