Anything but Perfect, No. 12 Alabama Still Dominates Mississippi State, 40-17

STARKVILLE, Miss. — On a sparkling Mississippi night, Alabama football dazzled.

On Saturday, the No. 12 Crimson Tide defeated the Mississippi State Bulldogs 37-17 behind a big night from quarterback Jalen Milroe, who completed 10-of-12 passes for 164 yards.

Milroe, who has struggled through the air for much of the season, had a limited number of attempts with Alabama’s ground-game proficiency, but made the most of his opportunities in that department — with his first incompletion coming at 0:17 mark in the third quarter after an 8-for-8 start.

On the ground, it was much of the same for the junior, as Milroe broke off a 53-yard touchdown in the first quarter while adding a 10-yard touchdown in the second quarter, finishing with a total of 69 yards on 6.3 ypc.

The rushing attack was a re-occurring theme for the Crimson Tide, with Jase McClellan and Roydell Williams combining for 107 yards and a touchdown.

For the duo, an interior focus chipped away at the Bulldog defense and forced Zach Arnett’s front-seven to fatigue — opening numerous running lanes for themselves and Milroe by game’s end.

Apart from a few poor snaps from center Seth McLaughlin, the offensive line put together their best performance of the season — keeping Milroe relatively clean and opening numerous holes for McClellan and Williams.

On the defensive side of the ball, defensive-end Chris Braswell scored Alabama’s first non-offensive touchdown of the year — a 28-yard interception return touchdown.

All night, the Crimson Tide pressure was relentless on Bulldog quarterback Will Rogers, who was sacked three times and hurried another four.

Within the interior linebacker room, sophomore Jihaad Campbell and graduate-transfer Trezman Marshall stepped up in a big way, with Campbell tallying 14 tackles and Marshall adding another 1.5 sacks.

In the secondary, it was a primetime performance from Caleb Downs, who finished second in the tackle category with 13 while also nabbing a fourth-quarter interception that effectively sealed the game late.

After another dominating performance, a suddenly well-playing Alabama will hit the road once more – this time with a matchup against Jimbo Fisher and the 4-1 Texas A&M Aggies in College Station.

How it Happened

How to Watch No. 12 Alabama at Mississippi State

Who: Alabama (3-1, 1-0 SEC) at Mississippi State (2-2, 0-2 SEC)

When: 8 p.m. CT, Saturday

Where: Davis Wade Stadium, Starkville, Mississippi

TV: ESPN

Live Stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)

Radio: Crimson Tide Sports Network: Play-By-Play: Chris Stewart | Analyst: Tyler Watts | Sideline: Christian Miller

Series: Alabama leads 87-17-3 and has won 15 straight

Last meeting: Like many of the matchups between the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs over the last 15 seasons, Alabama completely overwhelmed Mississippi State in Tuscaloosa last season. Will Rogers attempted 60 passes for State, but the Bulldogs struggled to get anything going offensively. It not for a touchdown run on the literal last play of the game, Alabama would have shut Mississippi State out. Bryce Young threw for 249 yards and 2 touchdowns as Alabama rolled to a 30-6 victory.

Last time out, Alabama: The first half of Alabama's game against Ole Miss was looking like more of the same lackluster performance from the previous two games. But the defense was dominant in the second half, and the offense as a whole started to figure some things out on the way to a 24-10 victory over the Rebels. Jase McClellan had his first 100-yard game of the season, Jalen Milroe completed 17 of 21 passes, and the Crimson Tide defense finished with 10 tackles for loss.

Last time out, Mississippi State: Will Rogers threw for nearly 500 yards, but it still wasn't enough for Mississippi State in a 37-30 loss at South Carolina. The Bulldogs fell behind by 14 points, but rallied to tie it up. The game continued in that manner until South Carolina pulled away in the fourth quarter.