Nov. 26, 2011

Recap |  Final Stats |  Quotes

OLE MISS NOTES

SERIES INFORMATION
• This game marked the 108th meeting of one of the nation's most-played rivalries. Ole Miss holds a 60-42-6 advantage in the series dating back to 1901. The Ole Miss-Mississippi State series is tied with the Michigan-Ohio State series for the 15th longest in NCAA Division I-A history. The rivalry is also tied for the eighth longest uninterrupted series, as the NCAA considered today’s game the 97th consecutive year that the two schools have faced each other. The game was also the 84th "Battle of the Golden Egg," as the two schools started playing for the trophy in 1927. Ole Miss holds a 54-25-5 advantage in the "Egg Bowl."

CAPTAINS
(All Seniors): Brandon Bolden (RB), Kentrell Lockett (DL), Damien Jackson (S) and Bradley Sowell (OL).

GAME NOTES
• Ole Miss started nine freshmen in today’s game: Offense - Nickolas Brassell (WR), Donte Moncrief (WR)and Collins Moore (WR); Defense - Byron Bennett (DT), Cliff Coleman (CB), Senquez Golson (CB), C.J. Johnson (DE), Cody Prewitt (SS) and Ralph Williams (LB). The six freshmen starters on defense is the second most in th nation this season behind Indiana (seven).

OFFENSIVE NOTES
• Freshman wide receiver Donte Moncrief posted four receptions for 20 yards and finished the season with 31 catches, which broke Mike Espy’s Ole Miss freshman record of 30 receptions set in 2002. He also finished with 454 yards receiving which was 11 yards shy of Espy’s freshman record of 465 yards. 
• Senior running back Enrique Davis led Ole Miss with 32 yards rushing on 12 carries. It marked the first time since the season opener Davis led the Rebels in rushing.
• Junior tight end Jamal Mosley caught a career-long 63 yard pass.

DEFENSIVE NOTES
• Freshman safety Cody Prewitt posted five tackles (two solo) and picked off his first career pass in the second quarter.
• Freshman linebacker Ralph Williams tallied a career-high 11 tackles and 2.0 TFLs in the start.
• Senior cornerback Vincent Moss tallied a career-high seven tackles (all solo) in his first career start.
• Freshman defensive end C.J. Johnson posted a career-high with 10 tackles (two solo) and 1.0 TFL.

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
• Junior Bryson Rose nailed a 28-yard field goal in the second quarter. He finished the season 9-11 on field goal attempts and set a school record with 17 consectutive field goals made dating back to last season.
• Junior punter Tyler Campbell downed three punts inside the 20-yard line and finished the game with six punts for a 48.0-yard average. He entered the game fourth in the nation with 25 punts down inside in the 20-yard line.

MISSISSIPPI STATE NOTES

TEAM NOTES
• Mississippi State is bowl eligible in consecutive seasons for the first time since 1999-2000, when the Bulldogs beat Clemson in the Peach Bowl (1999) and Texas A&M in the Independence Bowl (2000).
• The Bulldogs won their third-straight Egg Bowl, the longest streak in the series for the Maroon and White since winning
four-consecutive games from 1939-42.
• The 28-point victory over Ole Miss is the largest victory for MSU over its in-state rival since a 33-0 triumph on Nov. 8,
1919.
• State held Ole Miss to just three points, its’ lowest Egg Bowl output since 1996, when MSU shut out the Rebels, 17-0.
• Dan Mullen is averaging 34.7 points against Ole Miss in his three years in Starkville, the highest three-game average
against Ole Miss since averaging 47.3 points per game from 1915-1917.
• The Bulldogs finished the regular season with a school-record average of 55,949 fans per home game. The 335,695 total fans to watch a game at Davis Wade this season ranks third in school history (most in a six-game home schedule). All six home games this season ranked inside the top-15 home crowds in the history of Scott Field, while the 636,134 fans to see the Bulldogs play in 2011 are the third-most in a 13-game schedule.
• The Bulldogs’ 4,328 yards of total offense and 227 fi rst downs this season each rank fourth all-time in school history for a single season.
• State’s 18 passing touchdowns this season tie the school record set last season, while the 186 passing completions are tied for seventh-most in a single season in school history.
• During head coach Dan Mullen’s three seasons in Starkville, MSU has yet to lose to an unranked and not receiving votes squad.

PLAYER NOTES
• Senior quarterback Chris Relf tied Kevin Fant for seventh all-time in program history in touchdowns responsible (36). Relf is now the second-winningest quarterback all time in Starkville (.667, minimum 20 games started). In his last three Egg Bowls, Relf owns a perfect 3-0 record, going 24-of-33 through the air with 401 yards and seven passing touchdowns, along with 263 rushing yards on 47 carries and one rushing touchdown.
• Senior running back Vick Ballard is now tied for second all-time in career rushing touchdowns (27), and is sixth all-time in career scoring (176 points). With his ninth-career 100-yard rushing game (tied eighth all-time), Ballard eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark and sits at 1,009 yards this season (10th in school history for a single season).
• Junior All-American candidate Fletcher Cox notched 2.0 tackles for loss and one forced fumble. The defensive lineman ended the regular season with 12.5 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks in eight Southeastern Conference contests.
• Junior All-SEC candidate Cam Lawrence entered the game third in the SEC in tackles, and racked up a game-high 14 tackles vs. Ole Miss, including 1.0 sacks, 1.5 tackles for loss and one fumble recovery.
• Senior defensive back Damein Anderson recovered his third career fumble, senior safety Charles Mitchell forced his
second-career fumble and freshman defensive lineman Preston Smith registered his fi rst-career forced fumble.