STARKVILLE — Dan Mullen was all over the jumbotron at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in 2012.
After the Mississippi State football team beat Ole Miss 31-23 in 2010 in Oxford, Mullen told his players in the locker room, “We’re never losing to this team again.”
MSU backed up their coach’s statement in 2011, but Ole Miss earned a 41-24 victory in Oxford the following year to hand Mullen his first loss in the rivalry.
Following the game, a clip of Mullen’s comment elicited an eruption of excitement from the Ole Miss fans. That’s when numerous Bulldogs realized the importance of the Battle for the Golden Egg.
“That just really sank in,” said MSU quarterback Dak Prescott, who was a redshirt freshman in 2012. “That’s when I got a taste of the rivalry.”
No. 23 MSU (8-3, 4-3 Southeastern Conference) will try to reclaim the Egg Bowl trophy at 6:15 p.m. Saturday (ESPN2) when it plays host to No. 19 Ole Miss at Davis Wade Stadium.
Prescott isn’t the only Bulldog to see the Egg Bowl in a different light after the 2012 game. Senior cornerback Taveze Calhoun was a redshirt when MSU won in 2011. His first playing time came in that 2012 game.
“That’s when I got a true taste of how big the game is, just seeing how much they hate us and just knowing how much we hate them, too,” Calhoun said. “It really dawned on me that year, and it’s been getting bigger and bigger every year.”
Ole Miss won 31-17 last season in Oxford to increase its series lead to 62-43-6. But Mullen is 4-2 against Ole Miss. He has never lost at home in the series.
When Mullen was hired to lead MSU’s football program in 2009, he wanted to emphasize the rivalry in the state of Mississippi. He talked about the Egg Bowl trophy early and often, and even referred to Ole Miss as “The School Up North.” He still refers to Ole Miss by that moniker.
While an assistant coach at Florida, Mullen was involved in the rivalry against Florida State. As an assistant coach at Utah, he was a part of the rivalry between Utah and BYU (Holy War) and Utah and Utah State (Battle of the Brothers).
“I just always understood the importance of them,” Mullen said. “The importance of them within your fan base, that’s where it starts in making sure they know you understand the importance of a rivalry game, that they know you’re going to take the game seriously. When I got here, I wanted to make sure everybody understood how big a game it was for us.”
Even though the Egg Bowl might be overshadowed on a national level by the Iron Bowl (Alabama and Auburn) or rivalries like Michigan and Ohio State and Florida and Florida State, Mullen and Ole Miss fourth-year head coach Hugh Freeze have helped raised the profile of the game. Last season, both teams were ranked when the game was played at 2:30 p.m. on CBS. This season’s matchup will mark the sixth time both teams are ranked. It’s the first time the teams have played back-to-back games while ranked.
“For both of us to be in the positions we are in speaks a lot for our state, for our high school coaches, and the kids that come from this state that make up a lot of our team,” Freeze said.
MSU’s loss last season was Prescott’s first start against Ole Miss. He has seen action in three games against the Rebels and has 508 yards (432 passing, 76 rushing), two passing touchdowns, and two rushing touchdowns.
He didn’t start in 2013, but he led comebacks in the fourth quarter and in overtime to help the Bulldogs win and become bowl eligible.
Hailing from Haughton, Louisiana, Prescott didn’t know much about the rivalry, but he has come to understand, love, and embrace it.
Prescott could have left after last season for a potential opportunity to play in the NFL, but he wanted another shot to beat Ole Miss and bring the Egg Bowl back to MSU.
“From the time I got here, everything goes into this week — last year, this year, everything boils down to this,” Prescott said.
The rivalry also involves bragging rights for the teams and their fans.
“Those are your neighbors, those are the people you go out to restaurants with, your friends, people that live on your street, people you go out to the country club with, and people you go to church with,” Mullen said. “There’s either going to be a lot of maroon or red and blue worn to church on Sunday. I think people understand how important that is.”
n In related news, Prescott was named SEC Offensive Player of the Week on Monday.
Prescott is the first player in the 83-year history of the SEC to record 550-plus yards of total offense and account for seven touchdowns in a game. He had 554 yards (508 passing, 46 rushing) in a 51-50 victory against Arkansas. He threw for five touchdowns and rushed for another two.
He is the first Bulldog to earn five career weekly conference honors.
With the performance, Prescott became the first Football Bowl Subdivision player since 2013 to tally 550 yards of total offense and seven touchdowns in a game. He also became the ninth SEC player to be responsible for seven touchdowns in a game and the eighth SEC player to throw for more than 500 yards. He joined former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel as the only SEC player to rack up over 550 yards of total offense in a game.
As a result, he became the fourth player in FBS history — the second in the SEC (Florida’s Tim Tebow) — to throw for 60 touchdowns and rush for 40 touchdowns in a career. He is fourth in the SEC history with 107 touchdowns responsible for and is fifth all-time with 11,153 yards of total offense. He is the 12th player in FBS history (second in the SEC) to total 8,000 career passing yards and 2,000 career rushing yards.
n Mullen is happy with his current job.
FootballScoop reported Monday that Mullen was a serious candidate for the opening at Virginia Tech. He has been linked to open jobs in the last few years, but Mullen feels like that is a positive.
“As I always say, ‘You’re either getting hired or you’re getting fired,’ ” Mullen said. “I’ll always take getting hired because it means we’re winning and doing well.”
Mullen didn’t comment on the rumors about Virginia Tech, and said he won’t talk about any other jobs as long as he’s at MSU.
n Mullen said junior tight end Gus Walley is probable this week with an undisclosed injury.
Walley left the Arkansas game in the second half and didn’t return. He has missed three games this season with injuries. He has caught 19 passes for 146 yards and one touchdown.
Mullen said junior offensive lineman Justin Senior could have played last week after spraining an ankle in practice, but he wasn’t 100 percent. Redshirt freshman Elgton Jenkins filled in for him at right tackle.
Walley is the only questionable player this week.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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