Mississippi State has already forced the country to take a second look.
The Bulldogs were sitting at No. 24 before climbing to No. 16 after a 31-24 win over then-No. 19 Missouri, which has since dropped to No.
- That pushed Mississippi State to 4-0 overall and 2-0 in SEC play, and it put them in a very small club: only Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Mississippi State are 2-0 in conference games.
Even with that jump, there’s a strong case that the Bulldogs are still too low.
The AP Poll has not been aggressive enough about rewarding teams for early Power Four wins and punishing teams that take losses right away. That approach matters because it gives unbeaten teams a real chance to build a ranking that means something and forces the teams with blemishes to earn their way back up.
That’s where Mississippi State stands out. Four teams ranked ahead of the Bulldogs have already lost: Ohio State, Ole Miss, LSU and Oregon.
Ole Miss dropped five spots after a rough 52-28 loss at Florida, a game in which the Rebels gave up more than 300 rushing yards. Oregon is sitting at No. 15 after losing to Oklahoma State, and the argument for keeping the Ducks ahead of Mississippi State leans heavily on a win over USC, a team that doesn’t belong in the top 25.
Mississippi State’s resume is stronger than a typical unbeaten team’s, too. The Bulldogs have won at Minnesota in Minneapolis, beaten South Carolina in Columbia and handled ranked Missouri at home. That’s a far more convincing start than padding the record against soft opposition.
Kamario Taylor has been the engine behind it all. The sophomore quarterback has worked his way into the Heisman conversation, and his numbers are loud: 1,192 passing yards and 14 touchdowns, which is tied for the most passing touchdowns in the nation.
Mississippi State has piled up 172 points in four games, an average of 43 per game. For context, No.
13 Utah has scored 173 points and No. 14 Iowa has scored 131.
So where should the Bulldogs be?
No. 12 makes the most sense. That slot would put Mississippi State ahead of No.
15 Oregon, No. 14 Iowa, No.
13 Utah and No. 12 Texas Tech based on the overall body of work so far.
Texas Tech is the only real challenger in the discussion, thanks to a 28-26 win over No. 20 Houston and a 49-14 victory over Sam Houston, though the Red Raiders also committed four turnovers in that Sam Houston game.
The bigger distinction is that Houston is the only Power Four opponent Texas Tech has faced.
There is one clear pushback against moving Mississippi State higher: the defense. The Bulldogs gave up 34 points against South Carolina and 24 against Missouri. And the gap in the rankings is real, at least in the eyes of the voters, with Mississippi State sitting 388 points behind Texas Tech and 188 behind Utah.
The next two weeks should bring more clarity. Mississippi State hosts No.
7 Alabama at Davis Wade Stadium this weekend, then heads to LSU on Oct. 17.
Those games could settle the debate for good.
In Other News...
Kamario Taylor Just Gave Mississippi State Fans Another Reason To Believe
Nick Sabans on-air suggestion that Kamario Taylor should enter the transfer portal turned into one more flashpoint in Mississippi States surprisingly lively start. Instead of feeding the noise, Taylor doubled down on his commitment to the Bulldogs, and the team has backed him up with a 4-0 run that has pushed Mississippi State into the AP Top 25 at No. 16 after a win over Missouri.
Now the conversation shifts from outside skepticism to what Mississippi State can do next, with Alabama on deck in a matchup that will draw plenty of attention. Taylor has already answered one high-profile challenge with a public show of loyalty, and the Bulldogs get a chance to keep proving their early surge is real when the schedule gets tougher. [Read more 🡒]
Kalen DeBoers Unusual Road Routine Just Put Alabama Fans On Alert
Kalen DeBoer is taking an unusual approach for Alabamas trip to Starkville, with the Crimson Tide planning to travel on the morning of the game instead of making the usual day-before move. The short distance between the two campuses makes that possible, and it lets Alabamas players stay home and sleep in their own beds before heading east for one of the SECs more intriguing early kickoffs.
It is a small scheduling wrinkle, but it adds another layer to a matchup already carrying plenty of weight. The game is set for 11 a.m. and pits two undefeated SEC teams against each other, so every detail around preparation is getting extra attention. For Mississippi State, the setup means the Bulldogs will be waiting on a visiting team that is choosing a road routine not often seen at this level. [Read more 🡒]
Mississippi State Has A New Reason To Believe In The SEC Race
With about one-third of the SEC schedule in the books, Mississippi State has at least given itself something it did not have a few weeks ago: a fresh reason to believe the league race is still in play. The updated conference power rankings reflect a season that is still taking shape across all 16 teams, and the Bulldogs are now part of the conversation as the calendar turns toward Week 5 and October.
For a program trying to find its footing in a rugged league, that matters even if the road ahead is still crowded with questions. The next stretch will say plenty about whether this early momentum is real or just a brief opening in a conference where every week seems to reshuffle the order. [Read more 🡒]