Alabama–Mississippi State football rivalry

The Alabama–Mississippi State football rivalry, also known as the 90 Mile Drive[3][4] or the Battle for Highway 82,[5][6] is an American college football rivalry between the Alabama Crimson Tide football team of the University of Alabama and Mississippi State Bulldogs football team of Mississippi State University. Both universities are founding members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), and are currently members of the SEC's Western Division. The two campuses are located approximately 90 miles apart and are the two geographically closest SEC universities.

Alabama–Mississippi State football rivalry
Alabama Crimson Tide
Mississippi State Bulldogs
First meetingNovember 14, 1896
Alabama, 20–0
Latest meetingSeptember 30, 2023
Alabama, 40–17
Statistics
Meetings total108
All-time series86–18–3[1]
Alabama leads 88–17–3 on the field, but two wins were vacated or forfeited.[n 1][2]
Largest victoryAlabama, 59–0 (1922)
Longest win streakAlabama, 22 (1958–1979)
Current win streakAlabama, 16 (2008–present)
🌍
Locations along Highway 82

In 1935, MSU Coach Major Ralph Sasse, on "orders" from his team, went to Memphis, Tennessee, to select the first bulldog mascot. Ptolemy, a gift of the Edgar Webster family, was chosen and the Bulldogs promptly defeated Alabama 20–7.[7]

Alabama–Mississippi State is one of the Southeastern Conference's longest-running series, dating back to 1896. Mississippi State is Alabama's most played opponent, while Alabama is MSU's third most played team behind Ole Miss and LSU. Aside from the Alabama–Ole Miss football rivalry, it also has been one of the league's most lopsided with Alabama leading the series 85–18–3 through the 2022 season.[1]

Notable games
  • 1940: #11 Mississippi State, 8–0–1 on the season, defeated the 7–1 #17 Crimson Tide 13–0 in Tuscaloosa. The Bulldogs forced 5 turnovers on downs and remained undefeated on the season.[8]
  • 1941: The Maroons defeated Alabama in Tuscaloosa in September 14–0[9] on their way to winning the school's only football SEC Championship. Despite Mississippi State's head-to-head win and conference title, and the fact that Alabama finished #20 in the final AP Poll,[10] Alabama claims a national championship for this season. This has led to many Mississippi State fans and bloggers to clamor for the Bulldogs, who finished 16th in the final poll, to claim the title as well.[11]
  • 1956: The Crimson Tide snapped a 20-game winless streak by defeating the Maroons 13–12 in Tuscaloosa.[12]
  • 1974: 7–0 Alabama, ranked #4 at the time and the eventual SEC Champion, defeated 6–1 and #17 Mississippi State in a 35–0 rout in Tuscaloosa.[9]
  • 1976: The 6–1 Bulldogs, ranked #18, traveled to Tuscaloosa to face the 5–2 and #17 Crimson Tide, where Alabama won 34–17. Had the Bulldogs won, they would have later had to forfeit anyway.[13]
  • 1980: In what is often named the biggest win in Mississippi State football history,[9][14] the Bulldogs upset the #1 and two-time defending national champion Crimson Tide 6–3 in Jackson, snapping Alabama's 28-game winning streak.[15] The Bulldogs held the prolific Tide wishbone offense to 116 yards on the ground, one third of its season average up to that point.[16] Trailing 6–3 in the final minute, Alabama drove to the MSU 4-yard-line before a big hit from Bulldog linebacker Tyrone Keys jarred the football loose, sealing the upset win for the Bulldogs.[17] After the game, Alabama coach Bear Bryant visited the Mississippi State locker room to congratulate the team for the win.[12] In 2007, College Football News' Pete Futiak named the game the 91st best ending in college football history since 1970.[18]
  • 1981: #8 Alabama avenged its loss from the previous year by defeating the #7 Bulldogs 13–10 in Tuscaloosa in the only top-10 matchup between the two teams until 2014.
  • 1986: #8 Alabama, coming off a loss to Penn State the week before, traveled to Starkville to take on the #19 Bulldogs. The Tide won a dominating 38–3 victory, outgaining the Bulldogs by nearly 400 yards. Bobby Humphrey rushed for a then-school-record 284 yards.[19]
  • 1996: Alabama, 8–1 and ranked #10, fell to the 3–5 Bulldogs 17–16 in Starkville, giving Mississippi State head coach Jackie Sherrill his first win over his alma mater Alabama. Alabama, who missed an extra point earlier in the game, drove to the Mississippi State 39-yard line in the final minute but turned the ball over on downs.[20] Alabama went on to win the SEC West anyway.
  • 1999: The Bulldogs, 8–0 and ranked #8, traveled to Tuscaloosa to take on the 7–2 #11 Crimson Tide, looking for their fourth straight win in the series. However, Alabama defeated MSU 19–7,[21] aided by three turnovers, a blocked punt, and what Mississippi State fans considered to be a pair of "questionable" holding penalties.[9] The win clinched the SEC West for the Crimson Tide and ended the Bulldogs' bid for their second undefeated season.
  • 2006: Mississippi State traveled to Tuscaloosa looking for its first SEC win of the season, while Alabama came in at 6–3. The game featured a pick-6 by each defense, and the Bulldogs stuffed Tide quarterback John Parker Wilson just outside the goal line to end the first half. Anthony Dixon ran for 121 yards, and the Bulldog defense held the Tide out of the end zone in the second half to seal the upset win.[22]
  • 2007: The Bulldogs clinched their first bowl bid in 7 years by beating #21 Alabama 17–12.[23] The Bulldog defense held the Tide out of the end zone the entire game, and cornerback Anthony Johnson returned John Parker Wilson's intercepted pass for 100 yards and a touchdown with 4 seconds to go in the first half.
  • 2012: The Bulldogs traveled to Tuscaloosa with a #13 ranking and a 7–0 record, hoping to knock off defending national champion and #1-ranked Alabama. In the buildup to the game, Mississippi State fans used Twitter to display "#WeBelieve 8–0" messages from all over the world,[24][25] even including the Bear Bryant statue outside Bryant–Denny Stadium,[26] and many bloggers declared it to be the biggest game in Mississippi State's history.[14] However, the game did not live up to the hype—Alabama won handily, 38–7,[27] holding the Bulldogs to only 47 rushing yards.
  • 2014: The Bulldogs, undefeated and ranked #1 for the first time in school history, traveled to Tuscaloosa to face the 8–1 #5 Crimson Tide. Mississippi State had earned the #1 spot in all polls including the new College Football Playoff Rankings after defeating three top–10 teams in a row (#8 LSU, #6 Texas A&M, and #2 Auburn). The 99th game of the series between the two schools was considered by many to be the biggest game of the rivalry. After getting their opening points by tackling running back Josh Robinson in the Bulldogs' own endzone for a safety, Alabama went on to defeat the Bulldogs 25–20. Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott, who had been considered a Heisman Trophy frontrunner for much of the 2014 season, became the conference leader in interceptions after throwing three picks during this game.
  • 2017: The 16th ranked Bulldogs took on #2 Alabama on a crazy night where two of the top three teams in the CFP Rankings lost (#1 Georgia and #3 Notre Dame). Alabama ended up rallying from a fourth quarter deficit due to a Jalen Hurts 26-yard TD pass to DeVonta Smith with 25 seconds remaining and the Tide survived in a 31–24 thriller.

Game results
Alabama victoriesMississippi State victoriesTie gamesForfeits / Vacated wins[n 2][n 3]
No.DateLocationWinning teamLosing team
1 November 14, 1896 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 20 Mississippi State 0
2 November 16, 1901 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 45 Mississippi State 0
3 November 8, 1902 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 27 Mississippi State 0
4 October 16, 1903 Columbus, MS Mississippi A&M 11 Alabama 0
5 October 15, 1904 Columbus, MS Alabama 6 Mississippi State 0
6 October 14, 1905 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 34 Mississippi State 0
7 November 3, 1906 Starkville, MS Alabama 16 Mississippi State 4
8 October 21, 1911 Columbus, MS Tie6Tie6
9 October 18, 1912 Aberdeen, MS Mississippi A&M 7 Alabama 0
10 November 27, 1913 Birmingham, AL Mississippi A&M 7 Alabama 0
11 November 26, 1914 Birmingham, AL Mississippi A&M 9 Alabama 0
12 November 27, 1919 Birmingham, AL Alabama 14 Mississippi State 6
13 November 25, 1920 Birmingham, AL Alabama 24 Mississippi State 7
14 November 24, 1921 Birmingham, AL Tie7Tie7
15 November 30, 1922 Birmingham, AL Alabama 59 Mississippi State 0
16 October 31, 1925 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 6 Mississippi State 0
17 October 9, 1926 Meridian, MS Alabama 26 Mississippi State 7
18 October 29, 1927 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 13 Mississippi State 7
19 October 13, 1928 Starkville, MS Alabama 46 Mississippi State 0
20 October 10, 1931 Meridian, MS Alabama 53 Mississippi State 0
21 October 1, 1932 Montgomery, AL Alabama 53 Mississippi State 0
22 October 14, 1933 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 18 Mississippi State 0
23 October 13, 1934 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 41 Mississippi State 0
24 October 12, 1935 Tuscaloosa, AL Mississippi State 20 Alabama 7
25 October 10, 1936 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 7 Mississippi State 0
26 October 28, 1939 Tuscaloosa, AL #20 Alabama 7 Mississippi State 0
27 November 30, 1940 Tuscaloosa, AL #11 Mississippi State 13 Alabama 0
28 October 4, 1941 Tuscaloosa, AL Mississippi State 14 Alabama 0
29 October 3, 1942 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 21 Mississippi State 6
30 November 18, 1944 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 19 Mississippi State 0
31 December 1, 1945 Tuscaloosa, AL #3 Alabama 55 Mississippi State 13
32 November 30, 1946 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 24 Mississippi State 7
33 October 23, 1948 Starkville, MS Alabama 10 Mississippi State 7
34 October 22, 1949 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 35 Mississippi State 6
35 October 28, 1950 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 14 Mississippi State 7
36 October 27, 1951 Starkville, MS Alabama 7 Mississippi State 0
37 October 25, 1952 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 42 Mississippi State 19
38 October 24, 1953 Tuscaloosa, AL Tie7Tie7
39 October 23, 1954 Tuscaloosa, AL Mississippi State 12 Alabama 7
40 October 22, 1955 Tuscaloosa, AL Mississippi State 26 Alabama 7
41 October 27, 1956 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 13 Mississippi State 12
42 October 26, 1957 Tuscaloosa, AL Mississippi State 25 Alabama 13
43 October 25, 1958 Starkville, MS Alabama 9 Mississippi State 7
44 October 31, 1959 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 10 Mississippi State 0
45 October 29, 1960 Starkville, MS Alabama 7 Mississippi State 0
46 November 4, 1961 Tuscaloosa, AL #4 Alabama 24 Mississippi State 0
47 November 3, 1962 Starkville, MS #2 Alabama 20 Mississippi State 0
48 November 2, 1963 Tuscaloosa, AL #7 Alabama 20 Mississippi State 19
49 October 31, 1964 Jackson, MS #3 Alabama 23 Mississippi State 6
50 October 30, 1965 Jackson, MS #10 Alabama 10 Mississippi State 7
51 October 29, 1966 Tuscaloosa, AL #4 Alabama 27 Mississippi State 14
52 November 4, 1967 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 13 Mississippi State 0
53 November 2, 1968 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 20 Mississippi State 13
54 November 1, 1969 Jackson, MS Alabama 23 Mississippi State 19
55 October 31, 1970 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 35 Mississippi State 6
No.DateLocationWinning teamLosing team
56 October 30, 1971 Jackson, MS #4 Alabama 41 Mississippi State 10
57 November 4, 1972 Tuscaloosa, AL #2 Alabama 58 Mississippi State 14
58 November 3, 1973 Jackson, MS #2 Alabama 35 Mississippi State 0
59 November 2, 1974 Tuscaloosa, AL #4 Alabama 35 Mississippi State 0
60 November 1, 1975 Jackson, MS #6 Alabama 21 Mississippi State 10
61 October 30, 1976 Tuscaloosa, AL #17 Alabama 34 Mississippi State 17
62 October 29, 1977 Jackson, MS #2 Alabama 37 Mississippi State 7
63 November 4, 1978 Birmingham, AL #3 Alabama 35 Mississippi State 14
64 November 3, 1979 Tuscaloosa, AL #1 Alabama 24 Mississippi State 7
65 November 1, 1980 Jackson, MS Mississippi State 6 Alabama 3
66 October 31, 1981 Tuscaloosa, AL #8 Alabama 13 Mississippi State 10
67 October 30, 1982 Jackson, MS #9 Alabama 20 Mississippi State 12
68 October 29, 1983 Tuscaloosa, AL #18 Alabama 35 Mississippi State 18
69 November 3, 1984 Jackson, MS Alabama 24 Mississippi State 20
70 November 2, 1985 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 44 Mississippi State 28
71 November 1, 1986 Starkville, MS #8 Alabama 38 Mississippi State 3
72 October 31, 1987 Birmingham, AL #16 Alabama 21 Mississippi State 18
73 October 29, 1988 Starkville, MS #19 Alabama 53 Mississippi State 34
74 November 4, 1989 Birmingham, AL #4 Alabama 23 Mississippi State 10
75 November 3, 1990 Starkville, MS Alabama 22 Mississippi State 0
76 November 2, 1991 Tuscaloosa, AL #7 Alabama 13 Mississippi State 7
77 November 14, 1992 Starkville, MS #2 Alabama 30 Mississippi State 21
78 November 13, 1993 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama† 36 Mississippi State 25
79 November 12, 1994 Starkville, MS #6 Alabama 29 Mississippi State 25
80 November 11, 1995 Tuscaloosa, AL #16 Alabama 14 Mississippi State 9
81 November 16, 1996 Starkville, MS Mississippi State 17 Alabama 16
82 November 15, 1997 Tuscaloosa, AL #17 Mississippi State 32 Alabama 20
83 November 14, 1998 Starkville, MS Mississippi State 26 Alabama 14
84 November 13, 1999 Tuscaloosa, AL #11 Alabama 19 Mississippi State 7
85 November 11, 2000 Starkville, MS #15 Mississippi State 29 Alabama 7
86 November 10, 2001 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 24 Mississippi State 17
87 November 9, 2002 Tuscaloosa, AL #11 Alabama 28 Mississippi State 14
88 November 8, 2003 Starkville, MS Alabama 38 Mississippi State 0
89 November 6, 2004 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 30 Mississippi State 14
90 November 5, 2005 Starkville, MS #4 Alabama‡ 17 Mississippi State 0
91 November 4, 2006 Tuscaloosa, AL Mississippi State 24 Alabama 16
92 November 10, 2007 Starkville, MS Mississippi State 17 Alabama 12
93 November 15, 2008 Tuscaloosa, AL #1 Alabama 32 Mississippi State 7
94 November 14, 2009 Starkville, MS #3 Alabama 31 Mississippi State 3
95 November 13, 2010 Tuscaloosa, AL #11 Alabama 30 #17 Mississippi State 10
96 November 12, 2011 Starkville, MS #4 Alabama 24 Mississippi State 7
97 October 27, 2012 Tuscaloosa, AL #1 Alabama 38 #13 Mississippi State 7
98 November 16, 2013 Starkville, MS #1 Alabama 20 Mississippi State 7
99 November 15, 2014 Tuscaloosa, AL #5 Alabama 25 #1 Mississippi State 20
100 November 14, 2015 Starkville, MS #2 Alabama 31 #17 Mississippi State 6
101 November 12, 2016 Tuscaloosa, AL #1 Alabama 51 Mississippi State 3
102 November 11, 2017 Starkville, MS #2 Alabama 31 #16 Mississippi State 24
103 November 10, 2018 Tuscaloosa, AL #1 Alabama 24 #18 Mississippi State 0
104 November 16, 2019 Starkville, MS #4 Alabama 38 Mississippi State 7
105 October 31, 2020 Tuscaloosa, AL #2 Alabama 41 Mississippi State 0
106 October 16, 2021 Starkville, MS #5 Alabama 49 Mississippi State 9
107 October 22, 2022 Tuscaloosa, AL #6 Alabama 30 #24 Mississippi State 6
108 September 30, 2023 Starkville, MS #12 Alabama 40 Mississippi State 17
Series: Alabama leads 86–18–3[1]
† Alabama forfeited as part of NCAA penalties[29]
‡ Alabama vacated wins as part of NCAA penalties[29]

See also

Notes
  1. Alabama forfeited a game in 1993 that officially results in a Mississippi State win instead of an Alabama loss. Alabama vacated the game in 2005, which results in removal of the game from Alabama's win column, but not an added win for Mississippi State.
  2. Alabama's 1993 victory was forfeited as the NCAA found Antonio Langham guilty of receiving improper benefits after signing with an agent following the 1992 season, forcing Alabama to forfeit all games in which Langham competed.[28][29]
  3. Alabama's 2005 victory was vacated as part of NCAA sanctions.[30][29]

References
  1. "Winsipedia - Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Mississippi State Bulldogs football series history". Winsipedia.
  2. Pinata, Patrick (May 24, 2019). "The Real Story Behind Alabama's 21 Missing Football Wins". fanbuzz.com. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
  3. "utvolsfootball.blogspot.com: The 25 Best SEC Football Rivalries". Archived from the original on July 8, 2011. Retrieved November 13, 2008.
  4. "Sporting News Blog: SEC Football a History". Archived from the original on March 2, 2008. Retrieved November 13, 2008.
  5. Report, Bleacher. "Alabama-Miss. State: Croom Seeks Third Straight Win in "Battle for Highway 82"". Bleacher Report.
  6. Rayburn, Taylor. "'Battle for Highway 82' returns to Starkvegas". The Reflector.
  7. "Mississippi State Traditions". Mississippi State.
  8. sparky39762. "Video: 1940 Mississippi State vs Alabama". YouTube.com.
  9. Metal Building Dawg (October 23, 2012). "History of MSU vs. Alabama". ForWhomtheCowbellTolls.com.
  10. "1941 Final AP Football Poll". CollegePollArchive.com. Archived from the original on July 4, 2012.
  11. Sutton, Justin (June 24, 2012). "Mississippi State Football History: 1941-Our National Title?". ForWhomtheCowbellTolls.com.
  12. Schexnayder, C.J. (November 9, 2010). "Alabama vs Mississippi State: A Historical Retrospective". RollBamaRoll.com.
  13. "Bulldogs forced to forfeit 19 football games". The Tuscaloosa News. Associated Press. May 24, 1978. p. 19. Retrieved June 21, 2012.
  14. The Croom Diaries (October 27, 2012). "Is This the Biggest Game in MSU History?". MaroonAndWhiteNation.com.
  15. "Series Preview: Alabama vs. Mississippi State". RollTide.com. November 13, 2008.
  16. Schexnayder, C.J. (March 18, 2013). "What the End of A Crimson Tide Dynasty Looks Like". TeamSpeedKills.com.
  17. Anders, Mike. "Mississippi State—Alabama 1980 end of game". YouTube.com.
  18. Futiak, Pete. "The greatest endings in college football history from 1970 to the present". CFN.Scout.com. Archived from the original on October 8, 2014.
  19. "1986 Game Recaps". 1987 Alabama Football Media Guide (PDF). Tuscaloosa, Alabama: UA Athletics Media Relations Office. 1987. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 26, 2014. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  20. "Mississippi State Stuns Alabama". Los Angeles Times. November 17, 1996.
  21. "Friday Flashback: Alabama 19, Mississippi State 7 (Nov. 13, 1999) Tide defense forces three turnovers and blocks one punt in the win". RollTide.com. November 13, 2009.
  22. "Mississippi State stuns Bama in Tuscaloosa for first SEC win". ESPN.com. November 4, 2006.
  23. "Miss. State earns second straight win over Bama". ESPN.com. November 10, 2007.
  24. McDaniel, Alex (October 25, 2012). "#WeBelieve: Mississippi State prepares for Alabama matchup, sparks Twitter trend". ClarionLedger.com. The Clarion-Ledger.
  25. cristilmethod (October 26, 2012). "#WeBelieve at the Today Show". ForWhomtheCowbellTolls.com.
  26. Gribble, Andrew (October 27, 2012). "Alabama's Bear Bryant statue the latest to receive 'We Believe' treatment from Mississippi State fans". AL.com.
  27. "Top-ranked Alabama rides fast start to rout of Mississippi State". ESPN.com. October 27, 2012.
  28. University of Alabama ledger-enquirer.com (subscription required)
  29. "Forfeits and Vacated Games". College Football at Sports-Reference.com.
  30. Estes, Gentry; Press-Register, Mobile (March 23, 2010). "NCAA upholds vacated wins penalties in the University of Alabama's textbook case (Updated with UA reaction)". al. Per June's original ruling from the NCAA Committee on Infractions, Alabama football must vacate all 10 victories during the 2005 season, including the Cotton Bowl against Texas Tech, all six wins in 2006 and the first five wins in 2007 leading up to when the textbook improprieties were discovered prior to the Tennessee game that season. Wins in 2007 over Tennessee and Colorado stand.
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