The LSU–Mississippi State football rivalry is an American
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...
rivalry
A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...
between the LSU Tigers and Mississippi State Bulldogs. Both universities are founding members of the
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...
(SEC), and are currently members of the SEC West with a total of 113 meetings. This rivalry is LSU's longest and Mississippi State's second behind the
Egg Bowl
The Egg Bowl (traditionally named the “Battle for the Golden Egg”) is the name given to the Mississippi State–Ole Miss football rivalry. It is an American college football rivalry game played annually between Southeastern Conference membe ...
against the
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi ( byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment ...
. LSU leads the series 74–38–3.
History
From 1923 to 1930, every game was played in the state of
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
, and LSU hosted every game from 1934 to 1957, and only four games in the series were played outside of
Baton Rouge
Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of counti ...
from 1934 to 1973 in order for State to realize a larger gate by playing at Tiger Stadium, which had a much larger capacity than the Bulldogs' home fields in Starkville and Jackson.The Knights Who Say Bayou Blogger Relocated Retrieved June 21, 2014.
When the SEC expanded in 1992, the matchup with LSU and Mississippi State was not played in November like it had since 1947 and has only been played once in the month of November since.
LSU has dominated most of the series since 1985 losing only six games with the most current loss in 2020, when the then-unranked Bulldogs defeated #6 LSU in Baton Rouge, 44-34.
Notable games
*1982: LSU came to Starkville 7-0-1 and ranked No. 6 in the Associated Press poll following a 20-10 victory vs. Alabama in Birmingham, but the Bulldogs defeated the Tigers 27-24. It was the first time LSU visited Starkville since 1923.
*1986: LSU's 47-0 rout at Jackson clinched the Tigers' first SEC championship since 1970.
*1991: William "Sleepy" Robinson led Mississippi State to a 28-19 victory in Tiger Stadium. LSU's
Todd Kinchen
Todd Kinchen (born January 7, 1969) is a former professional American football player who played wide receiver for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles / St. Louis Rams, the Denver Broncos, and the Atlanta F ...
had a then-school record 248 receiving yards in the loss.
*1999: The #7
Bulldogs
The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.Tigers at Scott Field. Rod Gibson the clinching touchdown in closing minutes.
*2000: After falling behind 31-17, the Tigers rallied to beat the
Bulldogs
The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.Mississippi State outgained the Tigers by over 100 yards and drove down to the 1 yard line in the final minute, but a goal-line stand by LSU saved the lead for a 30-26 Tiger win.
*2014:
Dak Prescott
Rayne Dakota Prescott (born July 29, 1993) is an American football quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Mississippi State, where he twice received first-team All- SEC honors, a ...
led the then-unranked
Bulldogs
The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.Tigers' 14-game win streak in the series. The Bulldogs actually led 34-10 in the fourth quarter, but LSU scored 3 late touchdowns to almost close the gap. However, the Tigers'
Hail Mary
The Hail Mary ( la, Ave Maria) is a traditional Christian prayer addressing Mary, the mother of Jesus. The prayer is based on two biblical passages featured in the Gospel of Luke: the Angel Gabriel's visit to Mary (the Annunciation) and Mary' ...
on the final play was intercepted by
Will Redmond
Will E. Redmond (born December 28, 1993) is an American football safety who is a free agent. He played college football at Mississippi State, and was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft. He has also playe ...
. Josh Robinson ran for 197 yards for the Bulldogs. This was Mississippi State's first win over LSU since 1999, and their first on the road in Baton Rouge since 1991. Mississippi State reached #1 in the rankings a few weeks later, and finished 10-3 on the season.
*2016: LSU's 23-20 victory turned out not only to be coach Les Miles' last game in Tiger Stadium, but also the last of his 114 victories at LSU. Miles was fired eight days later, one day after LSU lost 18-13 at Auburn.
*2017: LSU came into Starkville ranked #12 under first-year head coach
Ed Orgeron
Edward James Orgeron Jr. (; born July 27, 1961) is an American football coach. He was most recently the head football coach at Louisiana State University (LSU), a position he held from midway through the 2016 season until the 2021 season. Orge ...
, but it was the unranked
Bulldogs
The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.Nick Fitzgerald threw two touchdown passes and ran in two more, and the Bulldogs outgained the Tigers 465-270. It was also the first win over LSU at home in Starkville for the Bulldogs since 1999 and the first time they beat a ranked LSU team there since 1984.
*2020: Mike Leach, in his coaching debut for the Bulldogs, pulled one of the more memorable upsets in recent school history. Mississippi State entered the game as an 18-point underdog against defending national champion LSU. Instead, the Bulldogs upset the Tigers in Death Valley, 44–34. Mississippi State QB K. J. Costello threw for an SEC and school record 623 yards. LSU threw the ball heavily as well, with QB Myles Brennan throwing for 325 yards and 3 TDs. The Tigers had their 16-game win streak broken and became the first defending champions to lose a season opener since Michigan in 1998.
*2022: Brian Kelly, in his SEC debut for the Tigers, led the team to a 31-16 comeback victory in Tiger Stadium. LSU Nickel Back Jay Ward earned SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors following his impressive performance. Ward finished with 11 tackles, along with 1.5 tackles for loss and the game-sealing interception.
List of most-played college football series in NCAA Division I
This is a list of the most-played college football series in NCAA Division I. The Lehigh–Lafayette rivalry, known as "The Rivalry," is the most-played in Division I at 157 games. Lehigh and Lafayette are members of the Football Championship Sub ...