No. 12 Mississippi shuts down rival Mississippi State 17-7 to win Battle for the Golden Egg

Thu, Nov 23, 2023
NCAAF News (AP)

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) - Quinshon Judkins rushed for 119 yards and a touchdown, and No. 12 Mississippi clamped down on defense to beat rival Mississippi State 17-7 on Thursday night in their annual Battle for the Golden Egg.

Jaxson Dart threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Caden Prieskorn early in the fourth quarter to give the Rebels (10-2, 6-2 SEC, No. 12 CFP) a 10-point lead. Judkins scored on a 2-yard run in the third to put Ole Miss ahead 10-7.

Will Rogers passed for 207 yards and scored on a 1-yard plunge that gave the Bulldogs (5-7, 1-7) a 7-3 advantage with 8:33 left in the third.

But a targeting penalty on MSU linebacker DeShawn Page kept the ensuing drive alive, and the Rebels went 75 yards in 10 plays to regain the lead when Judkins punched it in.

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The road team has won six of the past eight Golden Egg matchups.

Ole Miss was shut out in the first quarter for the first time this season and was held to just a field goal in the first half. But the Rebels went into the locker room with a 3-0 lead despite being held to a season low for points in any half.

Caden Costa kicked a 36-yard field goal for Mississippi in the second quarter to cap a 66-yard drive that took 13 plays and 6:22.

Mississippi State drove 71 yards for a touchdown in 4:55 on its first possession of the second half.

Ole Miss finished with only 307 yards of total offense and was held below 100 yards passing as Dart finished 14 of 26 for 96 yards and a touchdown. Judkins carried 28 times and became the third Rebels running back to eclipse 1,000 yards twice in a career.

The Bulldogs had 303 yards of offense. Rogers completed 25 of 39 passes and had his second career rushing touchdown.

MSU averaged just 3.4 yards per carry.

BIG PICTURE

Ole Miss won 10 regular-season games for the second time in three years. Before the arrival of coach Lane Kiffin, the Rebels never had a 10-win regular season.

Mississippi State finished a tumultuous year dating back to December 2022. Bulldogs coach Mike Leach died shortly after the 2022 regular season, and the school fired new coach Zach Arnett this year before finishing 5-7.

UP NEXT

Ole Miss hopes for a bid to a New Year's Six bowl.

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football