Photo by: Austin Perryman/MSU Athletics
Bulldogs Going Bowling For The 12th Straight Season
November 14, 2021 | Football
STARKVILLE – One of the biggest keys to sustaining long term success for a football program is going to a bowl game each year and getting the extra practice time that goes along with it.
Mississippi State has been the benefactor of making a bowl appearance for the past 11 years and is heading back to the postseason again this year after attaining its sixth victory over Auburn last Saturday.
"I think we all look forward to going to a bowl," said head coach Mike Leach. "And then the other thing is that it's really valuable, especially if you're as a young as we are, you get several extra practices."
Bowl bound teams are permitted to practice or hold other athletic activities for up to four hours per day or 20 hours per week from the end of the regular season until their bowl game. By comparison, teams that do not qualify for a bowl game are limited to eight hours weekly for weight training, conditioning and film study.
MSU is one of only four Southeastern Conference programs to go to a bowl game in each of the past 12 years along with Alabama, Georgia and Texas A&M. Since their bowl streak began in 2010, the Bulldogs have appeared in the Armed Forces, Belk, Gator/ TaxSlayer (x3), Liberty, Music City (x2), Orange, Outback and St. Petersburg bowls and posted a 7-4 postseason record.
To put the bowl streak in some perspective, every player currently on State's roster was in elementary school when it started.
"I can't remember the last time Mississippi State hasn't been bowl eligible," said redshirt junior linebacker Aaron Brule. "I think that's always our expectations each year. Hopefully we can get some more wins to build on a better bowl."
Leach is certainly no stranger to the bowl process. He has now guided his team into a bowl game in 18 of the 20 years he's been a head coach and one of only three coaches to lead the Bulldogs to a bowl in his first two seasons.
State claimed a 28-26 victory over Tulsa in the 2020 Armed Forces Bowl in Leach's first year.
Mississippi State has two more chances at home to improve its bowl bid before the end of the regular season. The Bulldogs host Tennessee State on Saturday at 11 a.m. before finishing up against rival Ole Miss in the annual Egg Bowl on Thanksgiving night.
Bowl bids will officially be announced on Dec. 5.
Mississippi State has been the benefactor of making a bowl appearance for the past 11 years and is heading back to the postseason again this year after attaining its sixth victory over Auburn last Saturday.
"I think we all look forward to going to a bowl," said head coach Mike Leach. "And then the other thing is that it's really valuable, especially if you're as a young as we are, you get several extra practices."
Bowl bound teams are permitted to practice or hold other athletic activities for up to four hours per day or 20 hours per week from the end of the regular season until their bowl game. By comparison, teams that do not qualify for a bowl game are limited to eight hours weekly for weight training, conditioning and film study.
MSU is one of only four Southeastern Conference programs to go to a bowl game in each of the past 12 years along with Alabama, Georgia and Texas A&M. Since their bowl streak began in 2010, the Bulldogs have appeared in the Armed Forces, Belk, Gator/ TaxSlayer (x3), Liberty, Music City (x2), Orange, Outback and St. Petersburg bowls and posted a 7-4 postseason record.
To put the bowl streak in some perspective, every player currently on State's roster was in elementary school when it started.
"I can't remember the last time Mississippi State hasn't been bowl eligible," said redshirt junior linebacker Aaron Brule. "I think that's always our expectations each year. Hopefully we can get some more wins to build on a better bowl."
Leach is certainly no stranger to the bowl process. He has now guided his team into a bowl game in 18 of the 20 years he's been a head coach and one of only three coaches to lead the Bulldogs to a bowl in his first two seasons.
State claimed a 28-26 victory over Tulsa in the 2020 Armed Forces Bowl in Leach's first year.
Mississippi State has two more chances at home to improve its bowl bid before the end of the regular season. The Bulldogs host Tennessee State on Saturday at 11 a.m. before finishing up against rival Ole Miss in the annual Egg Bowl on Thanksgiving night.
Bowl bids will officially be announced on Dec. 5.
Players Mentioned
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