Mississippi State ushered in the Dan Mullen era with great success and in commanding fashion Saturday afternoon, as the Bulldogs ran past Jackson State at Scott Field, 45-7.This historical outing, delayed at the start by 30 minutes due to lightning in the area, marked the first meeting on the gridiron between teams from the SEC and SWAC and was viewed by a nationally televised ESPNU audience and sell-out crowd of 54,232, the 3rd-largest in school history.
The Bulldogs (1-0), who travel to Auburn next week looking for their 2nd-straight win at Jordan-Hare Stadium, now stand at 75-33-2 in lidlifters in their 110th season of action.
But few have been as dominating as this showdown turned out to be.
Mississippi State wasted little time in flexing its muscles. On their 2nd possession of the game, the Bulldogs parlayed a bobbled punt snap by the Tigers into a touchdown 4 plays later when backup quarterback Chris Relf connected with true freshman Chad Bumphis for a 15-yard scoring strike with 9 minutes, 12 seconds left in the 1st quarter.
After State's offensive production was momentarily hampered by fumbles, penalties and 2 missed field goals, it found its rhythm again right before the half when Relf took a keeper around the right end from the 5 for a 14-0 advantage with just 48 seconds left on the clock.
It was the spark MSU was seeking and one that didn't fizzle out.
Coming out of the locker room to start the 2nd half, State quickly jumped on the Tigers (0-1) and swelled its lead to 21-0 when sophomore running back Robert Elliott, back from a knee injury he suffered last year at LSU, scored from the 7.
State, which outgained JSU in total yards 359-194, struck 2 more times in the 3rd when Relf hit Marcus Green and Bumphis from 19 and 7 yards out, respectively.
Then in the 4th, MState made it a 38-0 affair when Sean Brauchle nailed a 25-yard field goal with 13:47 remaining.
Jackson State finally found the end zone midway through the 4th when Terrence Davis broke free for a 16-yard scamper.
However, the final points of the day belonged to Mississippi State. With 3:34 left, defensive back Corey Broomfield returned a Trae Rutland interception 43 yards for the score. It was the 1st INT returned for a touchdown since the 2007 season against Alabama, when Anthony Johnson took a John Parker Wilson pass 100 yards for the score in State's 17-12 stunner.
Broomfield's play capped a stellar performance by the defense. The Tigers managed just 7 1st downs and 62 yards rushing, while Rutland was 8 of 19 for 132 yards, with 52 coming on 1 completion in the first half.
The Bulldogs, however, manufactured 20 first downs and 202 yards on the ground, paced by Relf's 82. He also completed 7 of his 10 passes for 75 yards, while starter Tyson Lee was 8-of-13 passing for 82 yards.
As for Mullen, he became the 4th-straight MSU coach to win in his debut, joining the likes of Sylvester Croom, Jackie Sherrill and Rockey Felker! The SEC Rocks!
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