When the Mississippi State Bulldogs made their way to Birmingham to take on the UAB Blazers, they were predicted to win,  and even though they had to work harder than they expected, they earned the W against a UAB team that has yet to experience a victory this season. The Bulldogs gave the MSU faithful at Legion Field a scare at the end of the half when they entered the locker room trailing the struggling C-USA team 3-0, but they eventually gave those same fans something to cheer for when time expired on this victory as the Bulldogs took it home 21-3 behind the gun-slinging of redshirt sophomore Tyler Russell.
The first half saw the Bulldogs record seven first downs and five punts in a futile effort to score against an ailing UAB team. There was a total of 118 yards recorded through offense with 72 yards churned out on the ground and 46 yards coming through the air. The team just did not seem to get a spark with Chris Relf taking snaps at QB in the first half, so it was decided to make a change in the offense. At the end of halftime, the Bulldogs saw a new face behind center in backup QB Tyler Russell, who churned out 166 yards, completing 11 of 13 passes and met up with his receivers for a season-high three touchdowns. Head coach Dan Mullen said the switch was made in order to spark the MSU offense. 
“It wasn’t that Chris (Relf) was playing poorly, I just felt that we needed a spark, and I guess putting Tyler (Russell) in was the best thing I could do to try to create a spark,” Mullen said. “Tyler came in and played exceptionally well. He had a lot of energy and created the spark for the team.”
On the second possession of the second half, Russell hooked up with Marcus Green for an 18-yard touchdown that just seemed to start a whole new game for the team as the Maroon and White went out in front with a 7-3 lead. After that, the offense did not let up when the redshirt sophomore met Chad Bumphis in the air for a 57-yard strike in the fourth quarter to run the score up to 14-3, which seemed to solidify the victory. Along with that, freshman Malcolm Johnson even pitched in with the first touchdown catch of his new Bulldog career when he pulled in a 20-yard catch with 5:03 left on the play clock in the fourth quarter as the team reached its final score at 21-3.
Tyler Russell may have been the feel-good story of the afternoon, but while he was picking apart UAB through the air, other Bulldogs were grinding it out on the ground. Senior Vick Ballard eclipsed the 100-yard mark for the third time this season as he put up 101 rushing yards while averaging 5.3 yards with 19 carries. Other offensive praise for the afternoon went around for receivers Chad Bumphis, who lead the team with his four receptions for 66 yards, as Arceto Clark also had his four receptions that resulted in 33 yards.
Brandon Wilson led the team with nine tackles all while both forcing and recovering a fumble. This game also saw junior cornerback Johnthan Banks record his 11th career interception as he also continues to pad up stats for his Bulldog career. The defense ended the game having only given up 340 yards to the Blazers in this victory that they earned.
With this victory, Mississippi State has a record of 16-0 under Mullen when leading after three quarters. 
Now with their fourth victory under their belt, the Bulldogs and Dan Mullen will begin preparations for next week as they return back to Starkville when they take on the No. 18 South Carolina Gamecocks. Kickoff at Davis Wade is scheduled for 11:21 a.m. and it will be televised on the SEC Network.