# 2008 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team

The 2008 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team represented Mississippi State University as a member of the Western Division of the Southern Conference (SEC) during the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Led by Sylvester Croom in his fifth and final season as head coach, the Bulldogs compiled an overall record of 4–8 with a mark of 2–6 in conference play, placing in a three-way tie for fourth in the SEC's Western Division. Mississippi State played home games at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi.
Croom resigned at the end of the season and on December 10, Mississippi State hired Florida offensive coordinator Dan Mullen.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 30 | 5:45 p.m. | at Louisiana Tech* | Joe Aillet StadiumRuston, LA | ESPN2 | L 14–22 | 25,224 |
| September 6 | 6:00 p.m. | Southeastern Louisiana* | Davis Wade StadiumStarkville, MS | | W 34–10 | 41,938 |
| September 13 | 6:00 p.m. | No. 9 Auburn | Davis Wade StadiumStarkville, MS | ESPN2 | L 2–3 | 55,082 |
| September 20 | 11:00 a.m. | at Georgia Tech* | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA | Raycom | L 7–38 | 48,402 |
| September 27 | 6:30 p.m. | at No. 5 LSU | Tiger StadiumBaton Rouge, LA (rivalry) | ESPN2 | L 24–34 | 92,710 |
| October 11 | 1:30 p.m. | No. 13 Vanderbilt | Davis Wade StadiumStarkville, MS | PPV | W 17–14 | 43,619 |
| October 18 | 6:00 p.m. | at Tennessee | Neyland StadiumKnoxville, TN | PPV | L 3–34 | 98,239 |
| October 25 | 6:00 p.m. | Middle Tennessee* | Davis Wade StadiumStarkville, MS | ESPNU | W 31–22 | 40,024 |
| November 1 | 1:30 p.m. | Kentucky | Davis Wade StadiumStarkville, MS | PPV | L 13–14 | 40,168 |
| November 15 | 6:45 p.m. | at No. 1 Alabama | Bryant–Denny StadiumTuscaloosa, AL (rivalry) | ESPN | L 7–32 | 92,138 |
| November 22 | 1:30 p.m. | Arkansas | Davis Wade StadiumStarkville, MS | | W 31–28 | 42,056 |
| November 28 | 11:30 a.m. | at No. 25 Ole Miss | Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, MS (Egg Bowl) | Raycom | L 0–45 | 55,231 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time |||||||

## Game summaries
### Louisiana Tech

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| MSU Bulldogs | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| • LT Bulldogs | 3 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 22 |

### Southeastern Louisiana

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Lions | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| • Bulldogs | 7 | 13 | 14 | 0 | 34 |

### Auburn

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Tigers | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |

### Georgia Tech

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| • Yellow Jackets | 14 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 38 |

### LSU

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 3 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 24 |
| • Tigers | 10 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 34 |

### Vanderbilt

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Commodores | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| • Bulldogs | 3 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 17 |

### Tennessee

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| • Volunteers | 0 | 6 | 7 | 21 | 34 |

### Middle Tennessee

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Blue Raiders | 3 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 22 |
| • Bulldogs | 14 | 0 | 10 | 7 | 31 |

### Kentucky

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Wildcats | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 14 |
| Bulldogs | 7 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 13 |

### Alabama

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| • Crimson Tide | 5 | 7 | 10 | 10 | 32 |

### Arkansas

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Razorbacks | 14 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| • Bulldogs | 7 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 31 |

### Ole Miss

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| • Rebels | 24 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 45 |

## Coaching staff

| Name | Responsibility | Position Group | Year | Alma Mater |
| Sylvester Croom | Head Coach | | 5th | University of Alabama (1975) |
| Woody McCorvey | Asst. Head Coach, Offensive Coordinator | Quarterbacks | 5th | Alabama State University (1972) |
| Charlie Harbison | Defensive Coordinator | Safeties | 2nd | Gardner–Webb University (1995) |
| Reed Stringer | Special Teams Coordinator | Tight Ends | 5th | Delta State University (2001) |
| Rocky Felker | Recruiting Coordinator | Running Backs | 7th | Mississippi State University (1972) |
| J.B. Grimes | | Offensive Linemen | 5th | Henderson State University (1977) |
| David Turner | | Defensive Linemen | 2nd | Davidson University (1985) |
| Melvin Smith | | Cornerbacks | 3rd | Millsaps College (1982) |
| Pat Washington | | Wide Receivers | 2nd | Auburn University (1987) |
| Louis Campbell | | Linebackers | 1st | University of Arkansas (1973) |
| Ben Pollard | Head Strength & Conditioning Coach | | 2nd | Texas Tech University (1984) |
| Brad Pendergrass | Assistant Athletic Director for Football Operations | | 5th | University of Tennessee (1998) |
| Ryan Hollern | Coordinator of Recruiting Operations | | 2nd | Gannon University (2001) |

## Statistics

Mississippi State Overall Team Statistics (as of Oct 11, 2008)

### Team

| Statistics | Mississippi State | Opponents |
| Scoring | 183 | 296 |
| Points per game | 15.2 | 24.7 |
| First downs | 187 | 200 |
| Rushing | 69 | 95 |
| Passing | 108 | 89 |
| Penalties | 10 | 16 |
| Total offensive yards | 3,312 | 3,990 |
| Avg per game | 276.0 | 327.5 |
| Rushing | 1,220 | 1,811 |
| Passing | 2,092 | 2,119 |
| Fumbles–Lost | 19-8 | 20-8 |
| Penalties–yards | 68-544 | 76-643 |
| Average per game | 45.3 | 53.6 |
| Statistics | Mississippi State | Opponents |
| Punts–Yards | 82-3,099 | 66-2,671 |
| Average per punt | 37.8 | 40.5 |
| Average ToP/game | 30:15 | 29:45 |
| 3rd down conversions | 58-178 | 59-168 |
| 3rd down percentage | 33 | 35 |
| 4th down conversions | 8-18 | 10-11 |
| 4th down percentage | 44 | 91 |
| Touchdowns scored | 23 | 35 |
| Field goals–att–long | 7–13–42 | 17-25–20 |
| PAT–Att | 22–23 | 33-34 |
| Attendance | 260,716 | 411,944 |
| Average | 43,453 | 68,657 |

#### Scores by quarter

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Mississippi State | 48 | 47 | 38 | 50 | 183 |
| Opponents | 76 | 60 | 78 | 82 | 296 |

### Offense
#### Rushing

| Name | GP-GS | Att | Gain | Loss | Net | Avg | TD | Long | Avg/G |
| Anthony Dixon | 12-12 | 197 | 930 | 61 | 869 | 4.4 | 7 | 71 | 72.4 |
| Christian Ducre | 12-1 | 56 | 234 | 12 | 222 | 4.0 | 2 | 20 | 18.5 |
| Robert Elliott | 4-0 | 18 | 65 | 4 | 61 | 3.4 | 1 | 15 | 15.2 |
| Tyson Lee | 11-8 | 62 | 228 | 191 | 37 | 0.6 | 1 | 18 | 3.4 |
| Wesley Carroll | 7-4 | 18 | 54 | 72 | -18 | -1.0 | 0 | 20 | -2.6 |
| Jamayel Smith | 12-4 | 2 | 13 | 10 | 3 | 1.5 | 0 | 9 | 0.2 |
| Wade Bonner | 12-0 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 10 | 1.4 | 0 | 3 | 0.8 |
| Brandon Hart | 12-2 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 2.2 | 1 | 4 | 0.8 |
| Chris Relf | 2-0 | 7 | 20 | 33 | -13 | -1.9 | 0 | 10 | -6.5 |
| Eric Hoskins | 11-4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 3 | 0.3 |
| Brandon McRae | 12-10 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | -1.0 | 0 | 0 | -0.1 |
| Marcus Green | 2-1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -3 | -3.0 | 0 | 0 | -1.5 |
| TEAM | 8-0 | 8 | 0 | 30 | -30 | -3.8 | 0 | 0 | -3.8 |
| Total | 12 | 397 | 1645 | 425 | 1220 | 3.1 | 13 | 71 | 101.7 |
| Opponents | 12 | 443 | 2055 | 244 | 1811 | 4.1 | 19 | 88 | 150.9 |

#### Passing

| Name | GP-GS | Effic | Att-Cmp-Int | Pct | Yds | TD | Lng | Avg/G |
| Tyson Lee | 11-8 | 112.96 | 153-260-5 | 58.8 | 1519 | 7 | 41 | 138.1 |
| Wesley Carroll | 7-4 | 85.17 | 55-115-7 | 47.8 | 560 | 3 | 50 | 80.0 |
| Chris Relf | 2-0 | 34.36 | 2-9-0 | 22.2 | 13 | 0 | 12 | 6.5 |
| TEAM | 8-0 | 0.00 | 0-1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Total | 12 | 102.53 | 210-385-12 | 54.5 | 2,092 | 10 | 50 | 174.3 |
| Opponents | 12 | 115.40 | 169-324-8 | 52.2 | 2119 | 13 | 87 | 176.6 |

#### Receiving

| Name | GP-GS | No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long | Avg/G |
| Brandon McRae | 6-4 | 33 | 302 | 9.2 | 2 | 24 | 50.3 |
| Aubrey Bell | 6-5 | 19 | 171 | 9.0 | 0 | 22 | 28.5 |
| Christian Ducre | 6-1 | 11 | 91 | 8.3 | 1 | 24 | 15.2 |
| Jamayel Smith | 6-2 | 8 | 120 | 15.0 | 0 | 41 | 20.0 |
| Co-Eric Riley | 6-1 | 8 | 75 | 9.4 | 0 | 26 | 12.5 |
| Delmon Robinson | 4-0 | 7 | 84 | 12.0 | 0 | 25 | 21.0 |
| Eric Hoskins | 5-1 | 5 | 36 | 7.2 | 0 | 14 | 7.2 |
| Anthony Dixon | 6-6 | 5 | 22 | 4.4 | 0 | 12 | 3.7 |
| Robert Elliott | 4-0 | 4 | 53 | 13.2 | 0 | 19 | 13.2 |
| Arnil Stallworth | 6-0 | 4 | 45 | 11.2 | 0 | 29 | 7.5 |
| Brandon Henderson | 6-0 | 2 | 11 | 5.5 | 1 | 7 | 1.8 |
| Marcus Green | 2-1 | 1 | 50 | 50.0 | 0 | 50 | 25.0 |
| Brandon Hart | 6-2 | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 0 | 8 | 1.3 |
| Wade Bonner | 5-0 | 1 | 6 | 6.0 | 0 | 6 | 1.2 |
| Austin Wilbanks | 4-2 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 0.2 |
| Total | 6 | 110 | 1,075 | 9.8 | 5 | 50 | 179.2 |
| Opponents | 6 | 65 | 829 | 12.8 | 4 | 70 | 138.2 |

### Defense

| Name | GP | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Sacks | Pass defense | Pass defense | Interceptions | Interceptions | Interceptions | Interceptions | Fumbles | Fumbles | Blkd Kick |
| Name | GP | Solo | Ast | Total | TFL-Yds | No-Yds | BrUp | QBH | No.-Yds | Avg | TD | Long | Rcv-Yds | FF | Blkd Kick |
| Total | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

### Special teams

| Name | Punting | Punting | Punting | Punting | Punting | Punting | Punting | Punting | Kickoffs | Kickoffs | Kickoffs | Kickoffs | Kickoffs |
| Name | No. | Yds | Avg | Long | TB | FC | I20 | Blkd | No. | Yds | Avg | TB | OB |
| Blake McAdams | 35 | 1,261 | 36.0 | 53 | 0 | 12 | 8 | 0 | | | | | |
| Adam Carlson | 2 | 50 | 25.0 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 1,016 | 56.4 | 0 | 1 |
| Eric Richards | | | | | | | | | 3 | 190 | 63.3 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 37 | 1,311 | 35.4 | 53 | 0 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 21 | 1,206 | 57.4 | 0 | 1 |
| Name | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Kick returns | Kick returns | Kick returns | Kick returns | Kick returns |
| Name | No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long | No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
| Total | | | | | | | | | | |