STARKVILLE — Carl Torbush has been on both sides of the Egg Bowl rivalry between Mississippi State and Ole Miss.
As the defensive coordinator at Ole Miss from 1983-86, Torbush didn”t lose to MSU.
Now as the defensive coordinator at MSU, Torbush turned the tables on Ole Miss on Saturday as the Bulldogs won the Egg Bowl 41-27 at Davis Wade Stadium.
It was a satisfying way for Torbush and MSU (5-7, 3-5 Southeastern Conference) to end the season.
The result of the Battle for the Golden Egg sometime can impact the decision of a recruit and MSU had some prospects in attendance at Davis Wade Stadium for the game.
Torbush said a high school or junior college player shouldn”t select a school because of one game, but admits that it does help.
“If you are coming to a school because of one game, you are probably doing it for the wrong reasons,” Torbush said. “You hope they come to your school because they like the university and the people.
“Can it get you over the hump (in recruiting)? I think it certainly can when you are trying to get where some people are in this league. For a coach, it does make your life simpler the next 365 days.”
Torbush was proud of the defense for holding the Rebels to 90 yards rushing and dangerous running back Dexter McCluster to 82 yards.
MSU dunior defensive end Pernell McPhee credited the coaching staff for having the Bulldogs ready to play and sees the program headed in the right direction.
“The coaches have us all believing in the locker room,” McPhee said. “This game was really good for next year, and we will feed off of this game to prepare for next year.”
Although still concerned about the big plays given up by the secondary (giving up 295 yards passing), Torbush knows it”s a young group that”s only going to get better.
MSU only had one senior starter in the secondary and that”s right cornerback Marcus Washington. The other departing defensive starters are defensive tackles Kyle Love and Charles Burns and linebacker Jamar Chaney.
Junior linebacker K.J. Wright will assume Chaney”s leadership role next season and is already looking forward to the opportunity.
“We saw how hard (the seniors) had been working,” Wright said. “We wanted to send them out on a good note. By only losing four players, our future is looking really good.”
n Note: MSU junior center J.C. Brignone and his wife Blair are expected to have their baby girl (Millie Lane) on Tuesday. The due date was set for Dec. 7, but Brignone announced after the Egg Bowl that labor will be induced early. Brignone left the game with a shoulder stinger, but said he was fine.
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