You had to see it to believe it. Maybe it was just the excitement of the first game, the fact that we haven’t played a football game since December or even the fact that we played a Division 1-AA school, but there was definitely something in the air at Davis Wade Stadium Saturday night. The weekend started off like any other game weekend at Mississippi State–the smell of tailgaters, the occasional outbursts of cowbells and the Famous Maroon Band drumline marching toward the stadium. While the game itself was supposed to be less than spectacular, nothing seemed any different to me as I made my way up to the Robert Hartley Press Box.
The game kicked off after the usual pregame fanfare and the Bulldogs’ 102nd home opener was under way. It took a little while for the boys in maroon and white to finally wake up and play, but it was just as well, as the Dawgs took a 32-13 lead into the halftime break.
Kevin Fant, who was benched in the Oregon game because of a bogus ruling by the NCAA struggled out of the gate, going 0-for-5 in the first quarter, but returned to the Kevin Fant of 2001 completing eight of his 12 throws in the second quarter for over 150 yards and a pair of scores. Then came history.
Stuck on his own 11-yard line, Kevin Fant found a wide open (and that’s an understatement) Ray Ray Bivines for the longest pass play in Mississippi State football history–89 yards. To cap it off, Ray Ray Bivines decided to try to pull off a leap into the endzone Ø la Dicenzo Miller, a move that cost him a 15-yard celebration penalty, a pretty good bell-ringing and an earful from Jackie Sherrill.
Despite the two “should-have-been-no-call” celebration penalties, the Dawgs seemed like a different team. A team with character, a team with class, a team who just wanted to play, have fun and most importantly, win.
The 46,477 fans that made it to Davis Wade saw the Dawg Pound Rock resurface, and as for the cowbells–well, they rang louder than ever. What was more amazing in my opinion was the attendance even after the game was well out of hand. People just did not want to leave. In fact, the fans stayed and even got louder as the game progressed.
In an attempt to have some fun in the midst of a game whose outcome was decided long ago, the students in the newly-refurbished Dawg Pound tried starting a wave. It took some work and a quarter to get going, but by the time the fourth quarter reached its halfway point, Davis Wade Stadium began to resemble Azteca Stadium in Mexico City during a Mexico soccer match as a maroon and white wave swept across the stadium.
The point I’m trying to make is that not only were the players having fun again, but the fans were, too. There was a new sense of excitement Saturday night and it was something to behold. Again, maybe it was just the first game, maybe it was because Jacksonville State was in town, but whatever it was, it was magical. It was definitely something you had to see to believe.
Top 10 Coolest Uniforms in College Football
No. 10–Notre Dame, green jersey–The Irish have strayed from tradition a couple of times in their storied history, changing their home navy to green.
No. 9–Washington–“U-Dub” made a little modification to the traditional purple, adding two thin gold stripes on each shoulder and changing the numbers to a more modern font.
No. 8–Colorado, 1998–The Buffaloes wore a black helmet featuring a silver logo, with a gold jersey and black pants. Some CU fans called the uniforms an “eyesore.”
No. 7–Florida, 1999–Steve Spurrier called this uniform a “fashion risk.” For the first time, the Gators wore their usual orange helmets and home blue jerseys, but instead of wearing the traditional white pants, they decided to don the old orange bottoms. In case you were wondering, Florida lost that game.
No. 6–Hawaii–Leave it to the Rainbows to come up with the country’s coolest threads. Their home uni features black pants that have a white stripe around the bottom of the leg, a dark green jersey with modern-looking numbers and a metallic green helmet.
No. 5–Nebraska–Although the alumni and fans in Lincoln absolutely hate the Huskers’ new uniforms, you have to applaud NU for their new uniforms. They added stipes down the sides of the jerseys extending down the length of the pant.
No. 4–Indiana, 2001–For one game last season the Hoosiers wore all red. Red pants, with black stripes down the side, a Denver Broncos-style red jersey outlined in black, along with the red helmet.
No. 3–Miami–The ‘Canes might take the award for the worst color combination in sports next to Wyoming’s brown and yellow, but they only finish third in this countdown.
No. 2–Georgia, 1998–For the Outback Bowl against Wisconsin, the Bulldogs wore black pants with their home red jerseys for the first time.
No. 1–Oregon–Dark green sleeves with a black chest and black pants oulined in bright yellow. Top that off with a metallic green helmet and you’ve got the coolest uniform in college football.