Bulldog Roundup: President says SEC favors no automatic bids to CFP

Your daily briefing on what's going on with Mississippi State Athletics

Mississippi State University President Mark Keenum speaks during the groundbreaking ceremony for the expansion of the Animal Emergency and Referral Center, affiliated with the Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine, in Flowood, Miss., Wednesday, May 19, 2021. | Eric Shelton/Clarion Ledger via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Mississippi State is hosting two different morning kickoff shows on its campus Saturday with Barstool Sports and SEC Nation ahead of Saturday’s game against No. 5 Georgia.

That’s a lot of media personalities in Starkville, which leads to lots of interviews and someone was bound to say something interesting.

Enter Mississippi State president Mark Keenum who told ESPN’s Paul Finebaum that the SEC would prefer to not have any automatic bids.

“"I'm not a big fan of automatic qualifiers," Keenum said on "The Paul Finebaum Show," which was live from Mississippi State ahead of Saturday's game against Georgia. "I think the best teams ought to play in our nation's national tournament to determine who our national champion in college football is going to be and not have automatic bids. That's the position of the Southeastern Conference -- presidents and chancellors, our commissioner, and probably most of the conferences that are part of the CFP."

The SEC and Big Ten have a December 1 deadline to make any playoff format changes to the 2026 CFP and it’s not likely the two commissioners will come to an agreement on a new format.

"We're still negotiating," Keenum told Finebaum. "We have to make a decision before the end of this month if we're going to expand to 16 next year. ... I'll be honest, I'm not very optimistic that we'll get to that, but we'll keep working on it."

Yesterday’s Results

• Women’s Basketball: Mississippi State 88, Georgia State 62
• Volleyball: Mississippi State 3, Arkansas 1 (27-25, 21-25, 25-16, 25-18)
• Men’s Tennis: Mississippi State at ITF M25 East Lansing
• Men’s Tennis: Mississippi State at ITA Conference Masters
• Men’s Tennis: Mississippi State at ITA Sectional Championships
• Women’s Tennis: Mississippi State at ITA Sectional Championships

Today’s Schedule

• Football: No. 5 Georgia at Mississippi State, 11 a.m., ESPN
• Men’s Tennis: Mississippi State at ITF M25 East Lansing
• Men’s Tennis: Mississippi State at ITA Conference Masters
• Men’s Tennis: Mississippi State at ITA Sectional Championships
• Women’s Tennis: Mississippi State at ITA Sectional Championships

Did You Notice?

• Mississippi State volleyball won its final road match of the regular season Friday night, beating Arkansas 3-1. Lindsey Mangelson led the team in kills, picking up 21 over four sets played. This is the fifth time this season she has earned 20 or more kills in a match, and the first time she has earned zero attack errors in a game. She ended the match with a double-double, earning 10 digs and a .429 hitting percentage from 49 attempts.

• In front of crowd of 6,000 screaming elementary school students, Mississippi State’s women’s basketball team recorded a 26-point win against Georgia State. Favour Nwaedozi  led the Bulldogs with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Destiney McPhaul collected 13 points on 5-7 shooting from the field and 3-5 shooting from distance, marking her second-straight game with 10-plus points. Freshmen Jaylah Lampley and Madison Francis both finished in double-figures. Lampley collected career highs of 12 points and seven rebounds, while Francis finished with career-highs of 10 points and seven boards.

Daily Dose Of Mike Leach

My fondest part of college was the interaction and everything I did with my fellow students.

Mike Leach

We’ll Leave You With This

GET UP, STARKVILLE!

IT'S GAME DAY! #HailState || @HardyMusic pic.twitter.com/yZXfnk4C20

— Mississippi State Football (@HailStateFB) November 8, 2025