1980 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team

The 1980 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team represented Mississippi State University during the 1980 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season is best known for a win over then-#1 Alabama, often considered to be the greatest win in school history.^[1][2]

1980 Mississippi State Bulldogs football
Sun Bowl, L 17–31 vs. Nebraska
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Ranking
AP	No. 19
Record	9–3 (5–1 SEC)
Head coach	Emory Bellard (2nd season)
Defensive coordinator	Melvin Robertson (2nd season)
Home stadium	Scott Field Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium
Seasons ← 1979 1981 →

1980 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Georgia $	6	–	0	–	0			12	–	0	–	0
No. 19 Mississippi State	5	–	1	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
No. 6 Alabama	5	–	1	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
LSU	4	–	2	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Florida	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
Tennessee	3	–	3	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Ole Miss	2	–	4	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Kentucky	1	–	5	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Auburn	0	–	6	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Vanderbilt	0	–	6	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 6	at Memphis State*		Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN		W 34–7	45,789	[3]
September 13	Louisiana Tech*		Scott Field Starkville, MS		W 31–11	32,812	[4]
September 20	at Vanderbilt		Dudley Field Nashville, TN		W 24–14	29,300	[5]
September 27	at Florida		Florida Field Gainesville, FL		L 15–21	56,225	[6]
October 4	at Illinois*		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL		W 28–21	60,889	[7]
October 11	Southern Miss*		Scott Field Starkville, MS		L 14–42	36,211	[8]
October 18	at No. 18 Miami (FL)*		Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL		W 34–31	17,806	[9]
October 25	Auburn		Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS		W 24–21	40,822	[10]
November 1	No. 1 Alabama		Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (rivalry)		W 6–3	50,891	[11]
November 15	LSU	No. 19	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (rivalry)		W 55–31	48,863	[12]
November 22	vs. Ole Miss	No. 17	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (Egg Bowl)		W 19–14	62,520	[13]
December 27	vs. No. 8 Nebraska*	No. 17	Sun Bowl El Paso, TX (Sun Bowl)	CBS	L 17–31	34,723	[14]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

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Personnel

1980 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR Black QB 13 John Bond Fr WR James Otis Doss OL Matt Edwards WR David Ellis OL Ronman Grace RB Michael Haddix OL Wayne Harris C 58 Kent Hull RB Donald Ray King RB Danny Knight RB Henry Koontz OL Alan Massey RB Mardye McDole OL Mike McDonald QB Robby Mink QB Tim Parenton WR Jerry Price RB Lamar Windham RB George Wonsley WR Glen Young	Defense Pos. # Name Class DL Eamie Barnes DE 79 Glen Collins LB 99 Johnie Cooks LB Don Edwards DB Lawrence Evans DB Rob Fesmire DB Larry Friday DL Ricky George DL Billy Jackson DB Willie Jackson DB Steve Johnson DL Tyrone Keys LB Rusty Martin DL Mike McEnany LB Curtis Stowers	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K, P Dana Moore So K Bob Morgan	Head coach Emory Bellard Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Game summaries

vs Ole Miss

Ole Miss Rebels (3–7) vs. #17 Mississippi State Bulldogs (8–2)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Mississippi St	10	0	3	6	19
Ole Miss	0	7	0	7	14

at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium, Jackson, Mississippi

• Date: November 22, 1980
• Game weather: Rain
• Game attendance: 62,520

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Mississippi St	Passing	John Bond	8/14, 151 Yds
	Rushing	John Bond	15 Rush, 163 Yds, TD
	Receiving
Ole Miss	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP MSU MISS 1 Mississippi St 24-yard field goal by Dana Moore 3 0 1 Mississippi St John Bond 57-yard touchdown run, Dana Moore kick good 10 0 2 68 Ole Miss Kinny Hopper 1-yard touchdown run, kick good 10 7 3 Mississippi St 32-yard field goal by Dana Moore 13 7 4 8:20 Ole Miss Gino English 7-yard touchdown reception from John Fourcade, kick good 13 14 4 7:40 Mississippi St Michael Haddix 10-yard touchdown run, kick no good 19 14 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 19 14

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