STARKVILLE — The maroon-clad fans howled with delight as the final seconds ticked off the clock Saturday at Scott Field.

Their coach, the one they had hoped and prayed would lead them out of the football wilderness, had just completed that task. Their program mattered again, and they beamed with delight at the possibilities. The Liberty Bowl? Chick-fil-A? Atlanta sure is nice around Christmas time. Heck, nobody in the Southeastern Conference is running away with anything — maybe even a New Year’s Day Bowl.

And as they watched their coach dogpile with his players, then lift one of them onto his shoulders, and the other team’s leader — the high-priced villain of the SEC, Nick Saban — skulk off the field alone, surrounded only by a half-dozen Alabama state troopers, six years of pain, suffering and embarrassment all seemed worthwhile.

MSU beat Alabama 17-12 on Saturday in front of a school-record 56,188 cowbell-ringing, joyously barking Bulldogs. The win made State (6-4, 3-3 SEC) bowl-eligible for the first time since 2000, and ensured it won’t finish with a losing record for the first time since that same year.

“These are games you remember the rest of your life,” said State defensive lineman Titus Brown, who led a superb defensive effort for MSU with three tackles, a game-ending sack and a quarterback hurry that led to a game-changing interception late in the first half. “You’re going to talk to guys 20 years from now and go out on the field, and remember what you did on the 40-yard line. Remember what you did on this play. You’ll get together with the alumni years from now and people are always going to talk about this game.”

People will also remember the wild on-field celebration after the clock went to all zeroes. After Brown sacked Alabama quarterback John Parker Wilson to end the Tide’s last threat, State’s players dogpiled near midfield.

So did its coaches.

Mississippi State coach Sylvester Croom jumped on the pile, then lifted Brown in the air. A couple of State players helped their coach, and carried Brown about 30 yards.

“It was a sign of joy. You can do a lot of that if you’re winning,” Brown said. “They took me from the 50 to about the 20, so I was up there a while.”

Croom said it was the first time he’d ever tried to put a player on his shoulders.

“It’s probably going to be the last,” he added, “because I probably won’t be able to straighten up in the morning.”

Brown earned his victory ride by making two of the biggest plays of the game — and, perhaps, in the program’s recent history.

With Alabama (6-4, 3-3) leading 9-3 and holding the ball at the MSU 2 with 17 seconds left in the first half, Brown came off the end to pressure quarterback John Parker Wilson on a bootleg attempt. Wilson floated a pass over the outstretched arms of Brown in an attempt to throw the ball away, but instead it landed in the arms of defensive back Anthony Johnson.

Johnson caught the ball two yards deep in the end zone, and raced up the left sideline for what was, officially, a 100-yard touchdown return. As Johnson neared the Alabama 20, all alone, he stretched the ball out and let the deafening roar of the crowd wash over him.

“I enjoyed the moment, but at the same time it was a long way down there,” Johnson said. “It’s just a great feeling. You know you just made a big play at crunch time.”

The interception return changed the complexion of the game. Instead of being down by at least nine points heading into the half, the Bulldogs suddenly found themselves up by one. They added to the lead early in the third quarter, when Derek Pegues returned another interception 40 yards to the Alabama 35, setting up Anthony Dixon’s 3-yard touchdown run.

Alabama stayed in the game, but struggled to get anything going against a Mississippi State defense that has not only improved over the course of this season but has owned Alabama the last three years. The Tide has not scored an offensive touchdown against State since 2004. On Saturday, they managed only four Leigh Tiffin field goals and 274 yards of total offense.

Tiffin’s last field goal, a 50-yarder, cut it to 17-12 with 6:47 to play. State took the ball and ran six minutes off the clock, though, leaving Alabama with 38 seconds to work with, no timeouts and 80 yards of real estate in front of it.

Wilson completed two quick passes to move the ball into State territory, then spiked the ball to stop the clock with 14 seconds to play. On the next snap, Wilson couldn’t find anyone before Brown planted him for a 10-yard loss. The last seven seconds rolled harmlessly off the clock as State’s bench erupted with joy.

It also let the minds of Mississippi State fans ponder a brave new world. A team that was picked to finish at the bottom of the SEC West could now finish as high as second. Two more wins would give it eight, its highest total since 2000. And with wins over ranked teams from Auburn, Kentucky and Alabama this season, a top 25 ranking is even a possibility.

“I think this is an indication of what we’re capable of doing,” said MSU quarterback Wesley Carroll, who was 9-of-21 for 100 yards on Saturday. “We feel like nobody can stop us right now.”