The rivalry between the Mississippi State University Bulldogs and the University of Alabama Crimson Tide may be a lopsided one, but for many MSU supporters, the contest between the two neighboring schools is serious business.
Athletic director Greg Byrne said the competition is partly due to the close proximity of the two schools, which are separated by 90 miles on US Highway 82. That span is the least between any two Southeastern Conference schools.
“I think physically we’re closer to Tuscaloosa then we are even to Oxford, so you know it’s something you want to take pride in what you’re doing and it’s a big game for both schools,” Byrne said.
The rivalry, he said, is also important because the two schools share the same recruiting areas.
“We’re pretty close to each other, and there are a lot of kids on our team that come from Alabama and there’s kids on their team that come from Mississippi,” he said. “There’s always a lot of on the line for that game.”
Despite Alabama’s commanding series dominance – 71 wins compared to MSU’s 18 – Mississippi State has had moderate success in recent years against the Crimson Tide, including back-to-back wins in 2006 and 2007.
Dean of students Thomas Bourgeois said MSU’s recent success against Alabama shows the potential for an upset in Saturday’s game.
“We’ve been also pretty lucky,” he said. “Over the last few years even though the college football gods would say Alabama is much better than Mississippi State, we’ve had their number a few times. Now, they’re so high ranked; we’re kind of the underdog – we have nothing to lose and they have everything to lose.”
MSU Student Association President Blake Jeter said for MSU fans, Alabama runs a close second to the school’s in-state rival, the University of Mississippi.
“I think if you ask many state students who our biggest rival is, they’ll say Ole Miss, but Alabama is right behind them,” he said. “You’ll have some that say Alabama because Alabama is just a walk down the road.”
Jeter said the perception of cockiness from Alabama supporters also draws the ire of MSU fans, especially in the hyper-competitive SEC.
“They do not like us, and we do not like them,” he said. “If we want to compete in the SEC in football, basketball, baseball, we’re going to have to compete against them.”
While the current attendance record of 57, 148 for Davis Wade Stadium was set against Florida on Oct. 24, the previous record of 56, 188 was set during Mississippi State’s 17-12 upset of No. 21 ranked Alabama team on Nov. 10, 2007.
Many students including Daniel Greer, a senior fitness management major said an even larger crowd should be expected at the Alabama game tomorrow.
“I think [the crowd will be larger], and that Alabama is so much closer than Florida is, and because state’s doing so much better with the new coach and everyone’s just kind of excited and wants to come see,” he said.
Sophomore chemical engineering major Chris Callahan, who grew up in Pratville, Ala., said he’s seen both sides of the MSU-UA rivalry.
“I used to live in Alabama, and Alabama people don’t hate Mississippi State, but when I came here, everybody from Mississippi State hated Alabama, so it’s much more intense in Mississippi than it is in Alabama,” he said.
Nathan Craft, a senior history major, said a win over this year’s highly-ranked Crimson Tide team would bring MSU’s football team a lot of respect and recognition.
“If we beat the No. 2 team, that’ll look really good,” he said. “We hung in with Florida and for us to beat Alabama would be crazy.”
Jeter said he expects the atmosphere in Starkville to be more intense than the Florida game because of the rivalry.
“The dynamic you’re going to see comparing Florida to Alabama is: yeah, Florida is No. 1, and we wanted to beat them bad, but Alabama is No. 3 and we want to beat them real bad,” he said. “It’s not just a target; it’s a personal target.”