Maroon Friday Update: Sept. 5
September 05, 2026 | Athletics
Happy Maroon Friday!
It's a great day to be a Mississippi State Bulldog!
We are coming up on the First Saturday in StarkVegas, but we got things kicked off last night with our soccer team securing the 150th win in program history!
Catch our team again Sunday as they face Charlotte at 1 p.m., with a senior ceremony taking place just before the match. Our soccer program chooses to celebrate our seniors a little earlier in the season, before SEC play begins, so this is a great opportunity to come out, recognize this group and catch the Bulldogs in action. See you there!
Following soccer, our volleyball team kicked off a two-match weekend as part of the Big Ten vs. SEC Challenge with a win over Iowa. The Bulldogs were back on the court tonight battling it out against Northwestern at Newell-Grissom and secured the program's second W for the weekend, going 2-0 for the weekend's challenge.
After volleyball and soccer got us off to a hot start on Thursday night, the annual Cowbell Yell took place on the West Lawn in The Junction. Thanks to everyone in our community, and especially our students, who showed up! Bulldogs Kamario Taylor, Anthony Evans, Kelley Jones, Fluff Blothwell and Isaac Smith came out to thank everyone for their support.
Speaking of student support, I want to give a shoutout to our Mississippi State students. As we head into the 2026 football season, 10,000 students have purchased all-sport passes — that's a record, and the most students we've ever had locked in before a season even starts.
I told those in attendance last night at Cowbell Yell that our students are the core and the nucleus of our gameday environments. They continue to show up and show out, creating electric atmospheres across our venues. I cannot wait to see the Davis Wade Stadium student section full tomorrow!
(And students, please...please...please drink water in preparation for tomorrow. We need you there loud and full of energy, but we also need you hydrated! We have new hydration stations throughout the venue where you can refill water bottles or cups. Please see the gameday guide HERE.)
We talk often about the intersection of higher education and sport and the transformative power of a college campus. Over the last several months, I have had the opportunity to work with Keegan Figueroa, President of the Student Association, along with other members of his executive board. I have been so impressed by their continued advocacy for students and their strong desire to position Mississippi State University for success, not only today, but far into the future. Our entire Mississippi State community is fortunate to have this team serving in these important roles and I am looking forward to what we can accomplish through an enhanced partnership. We like to give S.T.A.T.E. Shoutouts within our department when someone exemplifies our values to Serve. Together. Act. Transform. Excel. So, Keegan and the members of his executive board are getting a S.T.A.T.E. Shoutout for relentlessly demonstrating each of those values. Thank you, Keegan and team!
Our team is ready to welcome you back to Davis Wade Stadium tomorrow!
And while I am giving out S.T.A.T.E. Shoutouts, I want to recognize the Mississippi State Athletics staff who have been working for months preparing for your arrival.
We are incredibly proud of the opportunity we have to showcase the very best of Mississippi State every time we host a competition. Creating that experience takes long hours, intensity, thoughtfulness and, yes, sometimes thick skin. So much of what our team spends countless hours producing, advancing and creating is ultimately experienced in a matter of moments. And when it is done well, you may never know just how much work went into making it happen.
Our Facility Enhancements team has modernized the way we identify, maintain and improve our facilities. Did you know they completed more than 2,000 maintenance requests last fiscal year alone? Those range from quick fixes to major enhancements that support our student-athletes and improve your experience as a fan.
Our sports turf crew is among the first on campus each morning, ensuring our playing surfaces are safe and in the best condition possible. You see the beautiful masterpiece that is Scott Field on Saturday, but this team works year-round to keep our grounds among the best in the country.
Our academic staff continues to help our student-athletes achieve their goals in the classroom, while our compliance team works tirelessly to help us navigate an ever-changing national landscape.
Our Bulldog Athlete Services team includes Sports Medicine, Sports Science, Counseling and Sport Psychology, Sports Performance, Student-Athlete Development, Letterwinner Engagement and Nutrition. These professionals care for our student-athletes in ways both visible and unseen. Sometimes that means navigating complex medical situations with immense care. Other times, it means providing individualized support, developing a performance plan or simply meeting a young person where they are and helping them maximize their potential.
Our Brand Advancement unit includes the communications and creative teams. This group has played huge roles in transforming and elevating the Mississippi State brand. I believe they are the best in the country, and I hope they would tell you they feel empowered to keep pushing, experimenting and elevating. Although, they would probably just tell me they are going to "keep cooking."
That same unit includes our Fan Experience and Marketing team, which set an excellent standard last year and has spent months finding various ways to "wow" you through the pageantry, traditions and show surrounding the game itself. Our spirit groups continue to prepare and perfect their craft, spending early mornings working through every detail to deliver on gameday.
Our business office and HR team keeps the bills paid, systems organized, and our staff hired and onboarded. That is no small task. They continue to get it done and, when something unexpected comes their way, they continue to find a way.
Our equipment staff works months, and sometimes years, ahead to make sure our teams have what they need to compete, while also ensuring our Bulldogs look and feel first class when they represent Mississippi State.
Our broadcast team brings the Bulldogs to you when you cannot be with us in person. There is far more that goes into producing a broadcast than meets the eye, and this group continues to grow and elevate its work, earning praise from ESPN for the advancement of our operation and execution.
Our Event Management and Game Operations team puts in long hours well before you arrive to make sure movement throughout our venues is as seamless as possible. On gameday, they coordinate with countless campus partners, officials, chain crews, opposing teams, replay officials, meteorologists and many others. They are thinking about everything from the massive semi-trucks arriving with the visiting team to the hundreds of details required to conduct the competition safely and within the rules.
And as we continue growing the resources necessary to compete at the highest level, having great partners standing alongside us is critical. Together with MSU Bulldog Sports Properties, we continue to be tenacious in building meaningful relationships with leading brands, both nationally and locally. You will see those partnerships throughout your gameday experience, and their investment plays an important role in the future of Mississippi State Athletics.
Our ticket office works to create a seamless experience so you can get into our venues and straight to the action. They are also the ones helping fulfill those last-minute ticket requests or, occasionally, helping solve a little user error. (I have been there!)
And most of you probably know someone on our Bulldog Club team. This group of high performers and go-getters has helped us break fundraising records in each of the last three years. But we know those records are not possible without your generosity, belief and support.
So, thank YOU.
I could keep going because there are so many people and areas I haven't mentioned. But the point is simple: an incredible group of people has been working behind the scenes for months for the moment when the gates open, the cowbells start ringing and you come home to Davis Wade Stadium.
WE ARE READY FOR YOU!
There is nothing quite like a Saturday at Davis Wade Stadium.
We spend months planning, preparing and working through every detail because we know that when the gates open tomorrow, all of that work gives way to something much bigger.
It becomes your gameday and the memories that last a lifetime.
It is the Dawg Walk through The Junction. The smell of grills firing up. Maroon and White as far as you can see. The first clang of a cowbell. The Famous Maroon Band. The team taking the field. The person who has sat next to you for years. The friend you haven't seen since last season. The traditions you have practiced so many times that you don't even think about them anymore.
And then there are the moments you never could have planned.
That is the beauty of college athletics. You show up expecting to watch a game, and somewhere along the way, you make a memory. Check out the short videos below that showcase just that.
Maybe you remember exactly where you were sitting. Who was sitting beside you. What you were wearing. What play happened next. Maybe it reminds you of your time as a student, or your parents bringing you to Starkville as a kid. Maybe now you are the parent bringing your own children.
The styles change. The stadium changes. The names on the back of the jerseys change.
But there is something about Mississippi State that stays with you.
That connection is also a big part of what STATE 1878 has been showcasing on its platform.
STATE 1878 gives Bulldogs another way to get closer to Mississippi State through exclusive content, storytelling, access and experiences while creating meaningful opportunities for our student-athletes to build their brands and grow their value through name, image and likeness.
And the response has been incredible, and I have enjoyed watching the content that is being featured.
For all the changes happening around college athletics, I am reminded often that some of the best parts of this job have very little to do with budgets, facilities, conference meetings or any of the other things that can consume our days.
They are the people and the memories we get to make along the way.
For our family, Mississippi State gamedays have become part of our story, too.
This offseason, we added a member to our family – Champ! Champ, born in April, is an English Bulldog (because, of course). He joins his four-legged brother Mack (8), who is a boxer. Meatball and Shayne are having a great time learning all the "fun" that comes with having a puppy! Ha!
Whether it is the girls growing up around our teams, Champ making us all laugh with his cute little wobble or Mack experiencing another Mississippi State Saturday with visitors stopping by the house from all over the country, these are the pictures I know we will look back on years from now and remember exactly what this season of life felt like.
And I know our family isn't unique in that.
Some of you have been coming to Mississippi State games for 50 years. Some of you will walk into Davis Wade tomorrow for the very first time. Some inherited your love for the Bulldogs from your parents and grandparents. Others came to Mississippi State as students, fell in love with this place and never really left.
There are generations of memories tied to this university, and we want to see yours.
So, as we begin another football season, send us your favorite Mississippi State memory HERE.
Because long after the final score is posted and the stadium lights turn off, those are the things that remain.
The people. The moments. The memories.
And tomorrow, we get to start making some more.
See you in The Junction. See you in Davis Wade.
Hail State!
Zac
It's a great day to be a Mississippi State Bulldog!
We are coming up on the First Saturday in StarkVegas, but we got things kicked off last night with our soccer team securing the 150th win in program history!
Catch our team again Sunday as they face Charlotte at 1 p.m., with a senior ceremony taking place just before the match. Our soccer program chooses to celebrate our seniors a little earlier in the season, before SEC play begins, so this is a great opportunity to come out, recognize this group and catch the Bulldogs in action. See you there!
I told those in attendance last night at Cowbell Yell that our students are the core and the nucleus of our gameday environments. They continue to show up and show out, creating electric atmospheres across our venues. I cannot wait to see the Davis Wade Stadium student section full tomorrow!
(And students, please...please...please drink water in preparation for tomorrow. We need you there loud and full of energy, but we also need you hydrated! We have new hydration stations throughout the venue where you can refill water bottles or cups. Please see the gameday guide HERE.)
We talk often about the intersection of higher education and sport and the transformative power of a college campus. Over the last several months, I have had the opportunity to work with Keegan Figueroa, President of the Student Association, along with other members of his executive board. I have been so impressed by their continued advocacy for students and their strong desire to position Mississippi State University for success, not only today, but far into the future. Our entire Mississippi State community is fortunate to have this team serving in these important roles and I am looking forward to what we can accomplish through an enhanced partnership. We like to give S.T.A.T.E. Shoutouts within our department when someone exemplifies our values to Serve. Together. Act. Transform. Excel. So, Keegan and the members of his executive board are getting a S.T.A.T.E. Shoutout for relentlessly demonstrating each of those values. Thank you, Keegan and team!
Our team is ready to welcome you back to Davis Wade Stadium tomorrow!
And while I am giving out S.T.A.T.E. Shoutouts, I want to recognize the Mississippi State Athletics staff who have been working for months preparing for your arrival.
We are incredibly proud of the opportunity we have to showcase the very best of Mississippi State every time we host a competition. Creating that experience takes long hours, intensity, thoughtfulness and, yes, sometimes thick skin. So much of what our team spends countless hours producing, advancing and creating is ultimately experienced in a matter of moments. And when it is done well, you may never know just how much work went into making it happen.
Our Facility Enhancements team has modernized the way we identify, maintain and improve our facilities. Did you know they completed more than 2,000 maintenance requests last fiscal year alone? Those range from quick fixes to major enhancements that support our student-athletes and improve your experience as a fan.
Our sports turf crew is among the first on campus each morning, ensuring our playing surfaces are safe and in the best condition possible. You see the beautiful masterpiece that is Scott Field on Saturday, but this team works year-round to keep our grounds among the best in the country.
Our academic staff continues to help our student-athletes achieve their goals in the classroom, while our compliance team works tirelessly to help us navigate an ever-changing national landscape.
Our Bulldog Athlete Services team includes Sports Medicine, Sports Science, Counseling and Sport Psychology, Sports Performance, Student-Athlete Development, Letterwinner Engagement and Nutrition. These professionals care for our student-athletes in ways both visible and unseen. Sometimes that means navigating complex medical situations with immense care. Other times, it means providing individualized support, developing a performance plan or simply meeting a young person where they are and helping them maximize their potential.
Our Brand Advancement unit includes the communications and creative teams. This group has played huge roles in transforming and elevating the Mississippi State brand. I believe they are the best in the country, and I hope they would tell you they feel empowered to keep pushing, experimenting and elevating. Although, they would probably just tell me they are going to "keep cooking."
That same unit includes our Fan Experience and Marketing team, which set an excellent standard last year and has spent months finding various ways to "wow" you through the pageantry, traditions and show surrounding the game itself. Our spirit groups continue to prepare and perfect their craft, spending early mornings working through every detail to deliver on gameday.
Our business office and HR team keeps the bills paid, systems organized, and our staff hired and onboarded. That is no small task. They continue to get it done and, when something unexpected comes their way, they continue to find a way.
Our equipment staff works months, and sometimes years, ahead to make sure our teams have what they need to compete, while also ensuring our Bulldogs look and feel first class when they represent Mississippi State.
Our broadcast team brings the Bulldogs to you when you cannot be with us in person. There is far more that goes into producing a broadcast than meets the eye, and this group continues to grow and elevate its work, earning praise from ESPN for the advancement of our operation and execution.
Our Event Management and Game Operations team puts in long hours well before you arrive to make sure movement throughout our venues is as seamless as possible. On gameday, they coordinate with countless campus partners, officials, chain crews, opposing teams, replay officials, meteorologists and many others. They are thinking about everything from the massive semi-trucks arriving with the visiting team to the hundreds of details required to conduct the competition safely and within the rules.
And as we continue growing the resources necessary to compete at the highest level, having great partners standing alongside us is critical. Together with MSU Bulldog Sports Properties, we continue to be tenacious in building meaningful relationships with leading brands, both nationally and locally. You will see those partnerships throughout your gameday experience, and their investment plays an important role in the future of Mississippi State Athletics.
Our ticket office works to create a seamless experience so you can get into our venues and straight to the action. They are also the ones helping fulfill those last-minute ticket requests or, occasionally, helping solve a little user error. (I have been there!)
And most of you probably know someone on our Bulldog Club team. This group of high performers and go-getters has helped us break fundraising records in each of the last three years. But we know those records are not possible without your generosity, belief and support.
So, thank YOU.
I could keep going because there are so many people and areas I haven't mentioned. But the point is simple: an incredible group of people has been working behind the scenes for months for the moment when the gates open, the cowbells start ringing and you come home to Davis Wade Stadium.
WE ARE READY FOR YOU!
There is nothing quite like a Saturday at Davis Wade Stadium.
We spend months planning, preparing and working through every detail because we know that when the gates open tomorrow, all of that work gives way to something much bigger.
It becomes your gameday and the memories that last a lifetime.
It is the Dawg Walk through The Junction. The smell of grills firing up. Maroon and White as far as you can see. The first clang of a cowbell. The Famous Maroon Band. The team taking the field. The person who has sat next to you for years. The friend you haven't seen since last season. The traditions you have practiced so many times that you don't even think about them anymore.
And then there are the moments you never could have planned.
That is the beauty of college athletics. You show up expecting to watch a game, and somewhere along the way, you make a memory. Check out the short videos below that showcase just that.
Our creative team does an incredible job capturing what Mississippi State looks and feels like. As we prepared for another season, they went digging through the archives and brought some incredible moments back to life.Saturdays In The Fall.
— Mississippi State Football (@HailStateFB) August 30, 2026
Wrapped In Maroon & White. pic.twitter.com/EyI2u5QWFz
You can look at an old clip from Davis Wade and immediately be taken somewhere else.𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐋𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐜𝐲. pic.twitter.com/FE8W5Wv3O8
— Mississippi State Football (@HailStateFB) August 25, 2026
Maybe you remember exactly where you were sitting. Who was sitting beside you. What you were wearing. What play happened next. Maybe it reminds you of your time as a student, or your parents bringing you to Starkville as a kid. Maybe now you are the parent bringing your own children.
The styles change. The stadium changes. The names on the back of the jerseys change.
But there is something about Mississippi State that stays with you.
That connection is also a big part of what STATE 1878 has been showcasing on its platform.
STATE 1878 gives Bulldogs another way to get closer to Mississippi State through exclusive content, storytelling, access and experiences while creating meaningful opportunities for our student-athletes to build their brands and grow their value through name, image and likeness.
And the response has been incredible, and I have enjoyed watching the content that is being featured.
For all the changes happening around college athletics, I am reminded often that some of the best parts of this job have very little to do with budgets, facilities, conference meetings or any of the other things that can consume our days.
They are the people and the memories we get to make along the way.
For our family, Mississippi State gamedays have become part of our story, too.
Whether it is the girls growing up around our teams, Champ making us all laugh with his cute little wobble or Mack experiencing another Mississippi State Saturday with visitors stopping by the house from all over the country, these are the pictures I know we will look back on years from now and remember exactly what this season of life felt like.
And I know our family isn't unique in that.
Some of you have been coming to Mississippi State games for 50 years. Some of you will walk into Davis Wade tomorrow for the very first time. Some inherited your love for the Bulldogs from your parents and grandparents. Others came to Mississippi State as students, fell in love with this place and never really left.
There are generations of memories tied to this university, and we want to see yours.
So, as we begin another football season, send us your favorite Mississippi State memory HERE.
Because long after the final score is posted and the stadium lights turn off, those are the things that remain.
The people. The moments. The memories.
And tomorrow, we get to start making some more.
See you in The Junction. See you in Davis Wade.
Hail State!
Zac
Saturday, August 08
Thursday, August 21
Thursday, January 09
Monday, November 04