The No. 16 Mississippi State University (7-3, 3-3 SEC) football team may have come up short Saturday night, but their performance is one to be remembered as another stepping stone on this program’s journey to become a nationally-relevant football program.
In 2014, MSU played another big game against No. 2 Alabama in which the Bulldogs were ranked No. 1 in the nation for the first time in school history. The Bulldogs came up a little short in the 2014 game as well, but the two games show MSU football has ventured into uncharted waters in comparison to the program’s mediocre history. In recent years, embracing moral victories may have been the norm after a game like the one last Saturday, but in 2017 those are now games MSU is showing they are capable of winning.
Head coach Dan Mullen talked about his team’s expectations going into the game.
“Those guys in the locker room expected to win this game. They didn’t just expect it to be close they expected to win,” Mullen said. “That’s why they came to Mississippi State. They came here to go compete for championships and be a top team.”
In years past, MSU could do everything possible and still lose. Over the last couple years and on Saturday night, this was not the case.
“As coaches, we have to make sure we are putting our guys in the best position,” Mullen said. “A couple times we didn’t do that today. If we did everything we could have done, we would have won the game.”
Mullen’s statements on defeat rang as loudly as the cowbells among the 61,000 plus sellout crowd who showed up to support their Bulldogs. There were no underdog clichés from him like “we gave it everything we had,” or “I’m so proud of this team.”
Mullen and the rest of the players were extremely disappointed, but also held themselves accountable for the loss. The way the team played and their demeanor after the game was evidence this football team truly believed they could have beaten Alabama.
Quarterback Nick Fitzgerald, a junior from Richmond Hill, Georgia, talked about the emotions in the locker room after the game, and the ability to bounce back from a tough loss.
“We lost. We lost a football game we feel like we should have won,” Fitzgerald said. “I feel like we could have won, so I’m disappointed, sad, but we can’t lean on it too much, we must keep moving forward. We have two more games left in the regular season, must wins, and we have a bowl game, so we have to keep moving forward. We can’t dwell on this one.”
Safety Mark McLaurin, a junior from Collins, shared similar sentiments as Fitzgerald.
“It is very disappointing. We came out here and played so hard and just came up a little short. It was a game of inches,” McLaurin said. “You think about it over the weekend, but come Monday, you move and it’s a whole new game plan because we got a big one coming up on the road this week.”
The players and coach Mullen were adamant about not letting this game affect the rest of the season, and moving on from the loss. The attitude of the players and coaches around the program are different from years past, and with good reason.
The Bulldogs came into last Saturday’s game ranked 18th in the AP poll. Despite their loss, MSU moved up one spot to number 17 in the AP poll, and their College Football Playoff ranking will be revealed tonight.
Even in defeat, MSU proved itself on Saturday night with a national audience watching as they went toe-to-toe with the premier college football powerhouse, and gave them all they wanted and then some.
The rankings reflect MSU as a legitimate team, despite three losses, and so do the numbers.
They currently have the 12th ranked rushing attack in the nation, averaging just over 250 yards rushing per game. Defensively, the Bulldogs rank 11th in total yards allowed, holding opponents to just 305 yards per game, and 19th in points allowed, holding teams to just 19.3 points per game. The three teams who have beaten MSU this season are all currently ranked in the top 10. 
On Saturday, the Bulldogs resembled a top 20 team because they did not just keep it close, they out-played Alabama and entered the fourth quarter with a 24-17 lead.
MSU won the time of possession battle 38:56 to 21:04. They also rushed for 172 yards, which is the most Alabama has allowed since 2015 against Georgia. The Bulldogs looked like the more physical team as both Fitzgerald and Aeris Williams ran hard, and on a few occasions, ran through the Alabama defenders.
The defense was disruptive, putting heat on Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts all night as they sacked him five times. Ultimately, big plays cost MSU as they gave up a pair of 60 plus yard receptions to Calvin Ridley and a 48 yard run by Damien Harris.
MSU must now focus its attention toward the future, because to validate this season and continue the progress Dak Prescott and many other former MSU greats have started, they must win out.
The final three-game stretch includes a game on the road at Razorback Stadium against a desperate Arkansas team looking to keep their bowl hopes alive, followed by an unpredictable game in the always-interesting egg bowl against rival Ole Miss. Then, the season concludes with a bowl game, potentially ending the season with 10 wins.
Kickoff against Arkansas is set for 11 a.m. on Saturday. The game is in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and CBS will broadcast the game.