Mississippi State
7-2 , 3-2
Kentucky
4-5 , 1-5
#21 State Moves To 7-2 With 24-17 Victory Over Wildcats
October 30, 2010 | Football
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Thrilling nail-biters have become the norm for Mississippi State this season. But more importantly, so too have the wins.
Saturday night in front of another packed house at a fan-frenzied Scott Field, the No. 21-ranked Bulldogs extended their winning streak to six games following a 24-17 victory against Kentucky that wasn't decided until the closing seconds.
And as it has done so many times this season under the greatest of pressure, it was the defense providing the final blow to secure the victory.
With the Wildcats (4-5, 1-5) facing a fourth-and-10 at the MSU 20 and 31 seconds left on the clock, Johnthan Banks intercepted a Mike Hartline pass at the goal line to thwart any comeback Kentucky might have had. For Banks, it was his second pick of the year and the sixth of his career.
But at the same time, the offense deserves its due credit, too.
With the game tied at 17-apiece with 10:28 left to play, junior quarterback Chris Relf scored from 4-yards out to put MSU up for good.
Mississippi State, which improved to 7-2 on the year and 3-2 in SEC play, totaled 214 yards on the ground, with Vick Ballard totaling a game-high 103 yards. Relf rushed for 79 to go along with his 111 passing yards.
In all, the Bulldogs manufactured 325 yards of offense, while Kentucky had 347.
"I'm proud of the ways our kids battled," said second-year MSU coach Dan Mullen, whose team is off this week before returning to action Nov. 13 at Alabama. "When guys needed to step up, they stepped up and made plays."
Mississippi State got on the scoreboard on its opening possession when placekicker Derek DePasquale continued his hot streak with his sixth-straight field, this time from 33 yards with 2:42 left in the opening quarter.
Five minutes later, the lead swelled to 10-0 when Ballard broke free for a 54-yard scoring scamper up the middle.
After the Wildcats responded with a touchdown of their own, the Bulldogs came right back and made it a 17-7 affair when Relf hit Arceto Clark in the back of the end zone from 21 yards out.
From that point, though, Kentucky scored 10 unanswered points to tie the game on a Craig McIntosh 43-yard field goal and two-yard scoring strike from Hartline to Moncell Allen.
Team Stats
UK 0, MS 3
MS - D. DePasquale 33 yd field goal 8 plays, 58 yards, TOP 2:42
UK 0, MS 10
MS - Vick Ballard 54 yd run (D. DePasquale kick), 4 plays, 70 yards, TOP 1:33
UK 7, MS 10
UK - Randall Cobb 48 yd pass from Mike Hartline (Craig McIntosh kick) 6 plays, 69 yards, TOP 2:48
UK 7, MS 17
MS - Arceto Clark 21 yd pass from Chris Relf (D. DePasquale kick) 10 plays, 81 yards, TOP 4:38
UK 10, MS 17
UK - Craig McIntosh 43 yd field goal 9 plays, 44 yards, TOP 1:53
UK 17, MS 17
UK - Moncell Allen 2 yd pass from Mike Hartline (Craig McIntosh kick) 12 plays, 81 yards, TOP 6:19
UK 17, MS 24
MS - Chris Relf 4 yd run (D. DePasquale kick), 7 plays, 63 yards, TOP 2:27
