Bulldogs Turn The Page To The Egg Bowl

STARKVILLE – Moments after Mississippi State's 41-20 win over Southern Miss on Saturday, Bulldog coaches and players had already started to turn the page towards their final regular season matchup.

"You already know what week it is," said defensive end De'Monte Russell.

On Thanksgiving night, MSU will step into Davis Wade Stadium for the 119th contest against archrival, Ole Miss.

The matchup includes over a century's worth of intense battles culminating in yearlong bragging rights. Years of blood, sweat and tears have been spilled in meetings every season to gain possession of the prized Golden Egg trophy for the following 365 days.

In last season's matchup, State defeated Ole Miss 24-22 on a cold and rainy November night in Oxford. Will Rogers threw for 239 yards and two touchdowns in the win against the Rebels.

Rogers returned to the helm against Southern Miss this past weekend after missing the previous four games with an injury. After Saturday's victory, Rogers had a message of motivation for his team heading into the Egg Bowl.

"Obviously, everybody in the room knows what next game is so I'll let you figure that one out," Rogers said.

The first meeting between the Bulldogs and Rebels came in 1901 in which MSU reigned victoriously by a score of 17-0. The Bulldogs have also won four of the last seven contests in Starkville.

Russell, a senior from Jackson, knows exactly how much this game means for his teammates, coaches and the Maroon and White faithful.

"I'm not going to say too much, but if you're from Mississippi and you've played in it and I'm pretty sure you've watched this game… you already know what's about to go down," Russell said.

The Bulldogs defensive unit played a tremendous role in bringing the Golden Egg trophy back to Starkville last year. State held then No. 20 Ole Miss to a season-low 78 rushing yards and notched 15 tackles for loss, which tied for the second-most for the Bulldogs since 2000.

With the Egg Bowl merely a few days away, interim head coach Greg Knox is getting the Bulldogs focused on the task at hand at full speed.

"I got one approach and we're going forward, straight ahead," Knox said. "They know me and they know how I'm going to be every day when they walk in that room. They're getting the same guy they saw yesterday. We're going to approach it head on and we're going as fast as we can moving forward."

Mississippi State University Athletics

Bulldogs Turn The Page To The Egg Bowl

Players Mentioned

Will Rogers

De'Monte Russell

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