2014 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team

American college football season

The 2014 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team represented Mississippi State University in the 2014 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Dan Mullen, who was in his sixth season with Mississippi State. The Bulldogs played their home games at the newly expanded and renovated Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi and competed in the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

The 2014 season was one of the most successful seasons in Mississippi State's 110-year football history. In mid-October, they shot to #1 in the polls for the first time in school history, and the highest that any FBS team in Mississippi had been ranked at that late date in the season in half a century. They ultimately finished 10–3, the third 10-win season in school history. They netted a berth in the Orange Bowl, the second major-bowl appearance in school history, where they were defeated by Georgia Tech.

Before the season

Departing players

Key losses for the Bulldogs included:

• Denico Autry, starting defensive end and current member of the Tennessee Titans
• Gabe Jackson, offensive guard who was selected by the Raiders in the third round of the 2014 NFL draft
• LaDarius Perkins, starting running back and fifth on the Bulldogs' career leaderboard with 2,554 rushing yards
• Tyler Russell, whose 5,441 passing yards ranked third in school history at the time
• Deontae Skinner, starting linebacker
• Nickoe Whitley, a four-year starter at safety with 15 career interceptions and 2 key late-game forced fumbles to seal games in 2013

Preseason prognostication

The Bulldogs were picked to finish 5th in the SEC West by a vote of 229 media writers at the 2014 SEC Media Days,^[1] while Athlon Sports^[2] and NBC Sports^[3] both picked the Bulldogs to come in sixth.

Roster and staff

Schedule

Schedule Source:^[4]

• ‡ New Davis Wade Stadium Attendance Record

Game summaries

Southern Miss

*Mississippi State won the games on the field in 1975 and 1976, but were later forced to forfeit the games by the NCAA due to an NCAA rules violation in which offensive lineman Larry Gillard received a 33 percent discount at an Okolona, Mississippi clothing store.^[6][7][8]

UAB

South Alabama

LSU

Auburn

Kentucky

Arkansas

Tennessee–Martin

Alabama

Vanderbilt

Mississippi

Georgia Tech (Orange Bowl)

Rankings

Following MSU's win over Auburn, the team was ranked Number 1 in the AP Poll for the first time in the program's history. That also marked "the fastest [rise to the top] in AP Top 25 history."^[19] The previous mark was six weeks by Ohio State in 1954.^[20] The Bulldogs also became the first ever team to be ranked number 1 in the newly created College Football Playoff Poll when the initial poll was released on October 28, 2014.^[21]

References

1. Casagrande, Michael (July 17, 2014). "SEC preseason media poll picks Alabama over Auburn to win league title". AL.com. Retrieved May 3, 2015.
2. Lassan, Steven (January 16, 2014). "Early SEC Football Predictions for 2014". Athlon. Retrieved May 3, 2015.
3. Taylor, John (August 18, 2014). "CFT 2014 Preseason Preview: SEC Predictions". Athlon. Retrieved May 3, 2015.
4. "2014 Mississippi State Bulldogs Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved December 30, 2013.
5. "Southern Miss Golden Eagles at Mississippi State Bulldogs (August 30, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. August 30, 2014. Retrieved September 1, 2014.
6. NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION and Walter Byers v. Larry J. GILLARD, by and through Bob Tyler, as next friend, and Mississippi State University. Supreme Court of Mississippi. December 7, 1977.
7. "NCAA Orders Mississippi State to Forfeit 19 Football Games". Lakeland Ledger. May 24, 1978. Retrieved January 1, 2015.
8. Mississippi State vs Southern Mississippi @ Winsipedia
9. "UAB Blazers at Mississippi State Bulldogs (September 6, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. September 6, 2014. Retrieved September 7, 2014.
10. "Mississippi State Bulldogs at South Alabama Jaguars (September 13, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. September 13, 2014. Retrieved September 15, 2014.
11. "Mississippi State Bulldogs at LSU Tigers (September 20, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. September 20, 2014. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
12. "Texas A&M Aggies at Mississippi State Bulldogs (October 4, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. October 4, 2014. Retrieved October 5, 2014.
13. "Auburn Tigers at Mississippi State Bulldogs (October 11, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. October 11, 2014. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
14. "Mississippi State Bulldogs at Kentucky Wildcats (October 25, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. October 25, 2014. Retrieved October 25, 2014.
15. "Arkansas Razorbacks at Mississippi State Bulldogs (November 1, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. November 1, 2014. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
16. "Tennessee–Martin Skyhawks at Mississippi State Bulldogs (November 8, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. November 8, 2014. Retrieved November 8, 2014.
17. "Mississippi State Bulldogs at Alabama Crimson Tide (November 14, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. November 14, 2014. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
18. "Vanderbilt Commodores at Mississippi State Bulldogs (November 22, 2014)". Mississippi State University Department of Athletics. November 22, 2014. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
19. Vander Voort, Eric (October 12, 2014). "Mississippi State Completes Fastest Ascent to No. 1 in AP Top 25 History". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
20. "Mississippi State No. 1 in AP poll". ESPN.com. Associated Press. October 12, 2014. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
21. Tracy, Marc (October 28, 2014). "Mississippi State Leads College Football Playoff Committee's First Rankings". The New York Times. Retrieved October 29, 2014.