STARKVILLE — Asked if there was a point in the No. 12 Mississippi State football team’s 48-31 victory against No. 6 Texas A&M when he knew the Bulldogs had a win in their grasp, MSU running back Josh Robinson had the perfect answer.
“The whole game,” Robinson said with a shrug. “We felt like we were going to win as soon as we got out on the field, and once we started scoring, it felt like they couldn’t stop us.”
It was that kind of day for the Bulldogs, who are entering uncharted territory. They also have a swagger that rarely has been seen in Starkville.
Two weeks after making a statement with a 34-29 win at then-No. 8 LSU, MSU followed up with an even more decisive victory Saturday — a win that could vault the Bulldogs into elite national company.
By the end of MSU’s runaway victory — the Bulldogs led by 31 points until two late Texas A&M touchdowns — one thing came into focus: From the way they carry themselves to the results on the field, this year’s Bulldogs may be different. They also are for real.
“I think we made another statement today,” said MSU quarterback Dak Prescott, who helped the Bulldogs build a 48-17 lead midway through the fourth quarter. “Ultimately, we want to prove we belong and we can compete for the SEC West.”
The Bulldogs may have done that with a demolition of a previously unbeaten Texas A&M team that entered Starkvile averaging 51 points per game. The Bulldogs earned the victory on the strength of another star performance by Prescott, who had five touchdowns for the third time in the past six games. Prescott threw for 259 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 77 yards and three more scores, earning another victory against a top-10 team and impressing Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin.
“He played like he’s played all year, like one of the best players in the country,” Sumlin said. “We weren’t able to match that as a team.”
But Saturday wasn’t just about Prescott. It was about a team that has vaulted itself into the national conversation in impressive fashion. True to Robinson’s words, the Bulldogs walked into the showdown with a rarely seen swagger, and played like they wanted to show it off. Even though Texas A&M opened the game with a 69-yard scoring drive, MSU didn’t blink.
Instead, the Bulldogs put on a first-half clinic that likely vaulted MSU into the top 10 in the nation.
“It was a great effort today by our guys out there on the field,” said MSU coach Dan Mullen, who improves to 5-0 for the second time in three years. “I’m proud of everyone in the locker room, in the stands, and in the state of Mississippi. We’re going to enjoy this win tonight.”
The final margin, which belied a dismantling of Texas A&M, wasn’t the only aspect that gave the appearance of a changing culture at MSU. ESPN broadcast the win, and prior to kickoff, the SEC Network’s weekly college football lead-in show, SEC Nation, emanated from MSU’s tailgating area, The Junction. That exposure, and the incredible buzz brought by fans who showed up early Saturday morning, hours prior to the 11 a.m. start, fed into a performance that gave MSU’s its highest-scoring effort against a top-10 team.
While Prescott continues to steal the headlines for his on-the-field exploits and leadership, Robinson epitomizes MSU’s newfound swagger. Stepping out onto the field to take down a top-10 opponent for the second-straight game felt like business as usual for Robinson, the loquacious tailback who rushed for 107 yards and two touchdowns.
“I don’t want to take anything away from them because they are a great team, but I knew we were going to win that game,” Robinson said. “Even when they scored, I felt like it was just a matter of time.”
Texas A&M quarterback Kenny Hill opened the scoring with a 13-yard pass to wide receiver Josh Reynolds less than two minutes in. But after that, thanks to Robinson and an offensive line that controlled the line of scrimmage, it was all Bulldogs, all the time.
Robinson scored on runs of 1 and 2 yards in the first quarter. He keyed a ground game that rushed for 312 yards despite playing without starting center Dillon Day.
For past MSU teams, the loss of Day and the absence of starting wide receiver Jameon Lewis, who was scratched due to a leg injury, would have been problematic.
It wasn’t for these Bulldogs.
“We have guys ready to step up when their number is called,” Prescott said. “They showed it today.”
Without Lewis, MSU’s receiver didn’t miss a beat in an effort emblematic of the team’s “It’s our time” mentality. Sophomore De’Runnya Wilson led the way with 72 yards on four catches. He had one of two touchdowns from Prescott. Sophomore Fred Brown added the other, a 51-yard pass in the third quarter that gave MSU a 41-17 cushion and launched Davis Wade Stadium’s crowd of 61,133 into a raucous celebration that lasted much of the second half.
“That’s what big-time football is all about,” Mullen said. “Late in the fourth quarter, even when we were up, our fans showed up for all four quarters today. They were on their feet, cheering and making noise for the entire four quarters, and that’s what we need.”
The swagger and confidence exuded by Robinson and Prescott wasn’t exclusive to the offense. MSU’s defense harassed Hill from the start, and outside of the early drive and the two late scores, controlled the game.
Like Robinson, members of MSU’s defense expected the strong performance.
“That’s just what our defense does,” said MSU linebacker Richie Brown, who set a school record with three interceptions. “All of us are going to roll in and out, and we have confidence in all our guys.”
The Bulldogs kept constant pressure on Hill, who entered the game with two interceptions before throwing three Saturday.
“Mississippi State came out and beat us,” Hill said. “They had a great game plan. Congrats to them.”
Hill was dropped for four sacks, as MSU maintained its conference lead in tackles-for-loss with 41. Sophomore A.J. Jefferson led the way with one and a half sacks. Benardrick McKinney, Preston Smith, and P.J. Jones also had sacks.
MSU’s defensive effort was part of a proclamation that has gotten stronger by the week.
Want further proof this MSU team may be different? Mullen said the back-to-back victories against top-10 teams — a first in program history – could be the tip of the iceberg for the Bulldogs this season.
“Getting two SEC wins is not our goal. We want to get more,” Mullen said. “There are going to be a lot of firsts here.”
Follow Dispatch Sports Writer Brandon Walker on Twitter @BWonStateBeat
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