Perfect Mississippi State gets big chance against Alabama

• Mississippi State's preseason expectations have been met already
• A tough test awaits as the 12th-ranked Bulldogs head to Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Saturday to take on top-ranked Alabama
• Mississippi State hasn't played on a stage this big since the Bulldogs played Tennessee in the SEC championship in 1998

STARKVILLE, Miss. — Mississippi State's preseason expectations have been met, and one of the biggest games in school history is set.

The 12th-ranked Bulldogs head to Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Saturday to take on top-ranked Alabama. It is the first time since October 1942 that the two schools have faced off when both were unbeaten.

"Huge," MSU coach Dan Mullen said. "It's right where we want to be as a program."

The Bulldogs have been building toward this moment in Mullen's three-plus seasons. Players expected to start the season 7-0 when they saw the schedule, and fulfilling that goal has put them in position to play the biggest game of their careers. This is the second time in the program's 113-year history that the Bulldogs have started 7-0; the other was in 1999.

"When I took the job here, these are the type of games that we wanted to play in," Mullen said. "Our guys are going to be excited for the opportunity to be able to go play the No. 1 team in the country."

Mississippi State hasn't played on a stage this big since the Bulldogs played Tennessee in the Southeastern Conference championship game in 1998.

The Bulldogs will be underdogs on the road, but if they can upset the Crimson Tide, they will be the story of the season and legitimate contenders for a spot in the Bowl Championship Series title game.

"They're a really, really, really good football team," Mississippi State quarterback Tyler Russell said of Alabama. "They're 7-0; we're 7-0. We're trying to take something that belongs to them."

The Bulldogs have scored 25 points or more in seven consecutive games for the first time in school history; their 257 points are their most through seven games.

Alabama has scored 287 points through its seven games. The Tide have scored at least 33 points in each game, and their streak of seven consecutive games with at least 30 points also is the longest in school history.

Oh, and their defense has given up 8.3 points a game, the fewest in the nation.

Alabama is coming off a 44-13 win at Tennessee in which it outscored the Volunteers 21-3 in the second half.

Alabama ran for 233 yards and threw for 306 and played what coach Nick Saban said probably was its most complete game.

"It was a regular Alabama game plan: play tough, play physical and play smart," Tide tight end Michael Williams said. "We feel like, if we do those three things, that we can win any game."

Mississippi State stayed unbeaten with a 45-3 win against Middle Tennessee State. The game featured a 35-0 spurt in the second half, including a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns with the second-team offense in the game.

Russell was 17-for-21 passing for 191 yards and three touchdowns. LaDarius Perkins rushed for 125 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries.

Perkins is one of two Football Bowl Subdivision running backs with a rushing touchdown in every game this season; San Diego State's Adam Muema is the other.

"We've got to play like that against Alabama for all four quarters," Russell said of the second half.

MSU fans can daydream this week with their Bulldogs heading to Alabama for a high-level showdown they haven't seen in some time.

An undefeated MSU team has not played in a game against a fellow undefeated team this late in a season since 1941, when the 5-0-1 Bulldogs fell to Duquesne 16-0 on Nov. 15.

MSU won its lone SEC championship that season.

"I don't care about people giving us respect or not," Perkins said. "We're 7-0, and we keep moving forward.

"That's all we need to do."

Marcello also writes for The (Jackson, Miss.) Clarion-Ledger.

Contributing: Staff reports