Mississippi State jumps into Top 25

Published 4:31 pm Sunday, September 17, 2017

STARKVILLE (AP) — Following the largest victory in the 111-year series history with LSU, Mississippi State football jumped into the Top 20 of the national polls on Sunday. The Bulldogs are No. 17 in the Associated Press poll and No. 19 in the Amway USA Today Coaches Top 25.

Mississippi State beat LSU 37-7 on Saturday night. LSU had been ranked No. 12, and fell to No. 25 in the AP poll and No. 23 in the coaches poll.

It was the second-largest margin of victory over a ranked team for in school history.

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It’s the first time Mississippi State (3-0) has been ranked since Nov. 22, 2015, and it’s the program’s highest ranking since finishing the 2014 season Nos. 11 and 12, respectively, in the Associated Press and Coaches polls.

In the Dan Mullen era, the Bulldogs have now been ranked for 42 weeks. Mullen (64-42) also stands just one victory shy of tying College Football Hall of Famer Allyn McKeen for second on the school’s all-time wins list. McKeen was 65-19-3 from 1939-48.

Heading into Week 4, the Bulldogs are the only team in the nation to boast a Top 10 scoring offense and defense. Todd Grantham’s defensive group ranks fourth in the nation in total defense (206.0 ypg) and sixth in scoring defense (9.3 ppg). Offensively, Mississippi State is averaging 47.7 points per game, which is ninth nationally.

Mississippi State will have another chance to make an impression on voters in the coming weeks. It will play road games at No. 11 Georgia and No. 15 Auburn in the next two weeks.