The wait is over. Football season is finally here. Tomorrow night Mississippi State opens its 2012-13 football campaign at Davis Wade Stadium against the opponent which head coach Dan Mullen earned his first career win as head coach for the Bulldogs back in the 2009 season opener.
 The Jackson State Tigers and MSU made history four years ago when the teams were the first SEC and SWAC schools to play each other on the gridiron. Mullen said this is an instate opponent in which he has embraced as sort of a rival.
“I can’t wait, and I know that our guys are fired up and ready to get out there and go play Jackson State,” he said. “I think it’s a really fun rivalry for people in our state. There is a passionate fan base on both sides.”
State defeated the Tigers 45-7 the last and only time these two programs met and the freshmen from that MSU team are now seniors. One of these players is former cornerback converted to strong safety Corey Broomfield. Broomfield said things are a lot different now than four years ago when he played JSU in his first game as a Bulldog.
“You just worry about making sure you put your pants on right back then. You’re trying to get tickets; your parents say they’re coming; you’re excited just to be on the field, see the jumbotron and do the Dog Pound Rock,” Broomfield said. “Now I’m more situated about my job and making sure everyone else is doing their job, and I’m more worried about winning than myself.”
The Bulldogs are coming off a season in which they finished 7-6, winning their second consecutive bowl game, while the Tigers are coming off a 9-2 season. Both teams will be showcasing two new starting quarterbacks to open the season. However, MSU junior quarterback Tyler Russell has had four previous starts and has played in 18 games compared to only one career start and seven games played for JSU quarterback Dedric McDonald. Russell threw for 1,034 yards while having eight touchdowns compared to only four interceptions thrown with a 53.5 completion percentage last year, and senior wide receiver Brandon Heavens said Russell is going to have a break out year.
“If he keeps doing what he’s doing this past spring and this past summer, he’s going to be up for the Heisman,” Heavens said. “Our job is to catch the ball for him.”
Junior running back LaDarius Perkins will be leading the ground attack for the Bulldogs this weekend and has big shoes to fill replacing first round draft pick Vick Ballard, who now plays for the Indianapolis Colts. However, Perkins is not a stranger to carrying the rock as he rushed for 422 yards on 87 carries with two touchdowns and had 13 receptions for a total of 59 yards and two touchdowns last season.  Perkins will not be alone Saturday night, and Mullen said to expect many carries from sophomore running back Nick Griffin and others as well.
“Perkins since day one has been at the top, but I don’t know that he has separated himself, but he has pulled their level of play up,” Mullen said. “I like the way the guy (Perkins) has been running the football, and I’m going to feel pretty comfortable giving any of them the ball.”
 As for the defensive side of the ball, the Bulldogs will start senior defensive lineman Josh Boyd in the same position first round draft pick Fletcher Cox played last season. Boyd led the defensive line in tackles last year with 51 and also recorded 4.5 sacks. The defense will also be led by senior linebacker Cam Lawrence, who finished second in the SEC with a total of 123 tackles.
State will have arguably the best secondary in not only the SEC, but also the nation with senior defensive back Johnthan Banks leading the way. Banks only needs five interceptions, which he had last year, to break the all-time career mark at MSU. He will probably have plenty of opportunities against Jackson State for picks this weekend, considering the Tigers had 465 passing attempts compared to only 356 rushing attempts last season.
MSU’s quest for an SEC championship kicks off tomorrow at 6 p.m. at Davis Wade Stadium and will be televised on Fox Sports Net.