What bowl win would mean for Miss. State
Mississippi State isn't taking this for granted.
When the ball is kicked off in the Armed Forces Bowl at Among G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas, on Thursday (11 a.m., ESPN) against Tulsa, it'll mark the beginning of MSU'S program record 11th-straight bowl appearance.
Not too many teams in the country can say they have a longer active streak. Only three in the SEC, in fact – Alabama, Georgia and Texas A&M. A year that felt anything but normal will end with something routine – Mississippi State playing a game during the holiday season.
Of course, Mississippi State's streak could have very well ended if not for the COVID-19 pandemic. The Bulldogs went 3-7 against their Sec-only schedule. Who knows what their record would have been against eight SEC opponents and four non-conference foes, but ultimately it doesn't matter.
MSU is playing postseason football again, and the team feels like it belongs.
"The best thing they've done is not listen to all that noise outside," defensive coordinator Zach Arnett said. "You hear coach (Mike Leach) talk about all the noise outside telling them they're apparently not that good of players and they shouldn't be expected to play well. They didn't believe any of that B.S."
No. 25 Tulsa (6-2) obviously feels like it belongs as well. The Golden Hurricane's losses both came to ranked opponents, the latter of which ended with a last-second field goal off the foot of No. 6 Cincinnati's kicker. Tulsa would have won the American Athletic Conference had it been able to upset the Bearcats.
That's what makes this game so meaningful for Mississippi State.
A win for the Bulldogs would be their second-straight in upset fashion. It would also be their second ranked win of the season and their first since beating then-no. 5 LSU in the season-opener. LSU finished the season unranked at 5-5 and will not play in a bowl game.
Mississippi State also has victories over Vanderbilt (0-9) and Missouri (5-5). All things considered, beating Tulsa would most likely mark MSU'S biggest win of the season.
"I think they're a good opponent," Leach said. "I think they're gritty. I know several of the coaches over there, and those guys are gritty, fully-committed football guys. I think their team kind of represents that.
"They just have an awful lot of guys in the right place at the right time. That's a credit to their whole team. They've worked long and hard and as a result put together a good season."
Senior linebacker Erroll Thompson could be playing in his last game in maroon and white. Thompson, who was ejected for targeting on the second snap of the regular season finale against Missouri, has not decided if he will use his extra year of eligibility.
"The last game at home ending like it did, it does motivate me a little more to want to go out and play," Thompson said.
Junior wide receiver Austin Williams said he could feel positive momentum building with the way Mississippi State played down the stretch. But now it's a different ballgame in bowl season. .
It's a chance for the Bulldogs to put the peculiar happenstances of the 2020 season – from an abnormal number of transfers to opt outs to positive COVID-19 tests and subsequent contact tracing holdouts – behind them.
"We've had our ups and downs and a lot of different things to experience, but through it all we've stayed true to what we are," Williams said. "Our coaching, how we've been training all offseason. We just stayed together. Didn't split, didn't splinter.
"Everybody just jumped on board. We didn't waver. Didn't ask questions. I've definitely been proud of the guys for how they've adapted to it and been resilient for sure."
Contact Tyler Horka at thorka@gannett.com. Follow @tbhorka on Twitter. To read more of Tyler's work, subscribe to the Clarion Ledger today!