1996 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team

1996 Mississippi State Bulldogs football
1996 Mississippi State Bulldogs football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
	Western Division
Record	5–6 (3–5 SEC)
Head coach	Jackie Sherrill (6th season);
Offensive coordinator	Lynn Amedee (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Joe Lee Dunn (1st season)
Home stadium	Scott Field
	Seasons ← 1995 1997 →

1996 Southeastern Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Eastern Division
No. 1 Florida x$	8	–	0	12	–	1
No. 9 Tennessee	7	–	1	10	–	2
South Carolina	4	–	4	6	–	5
Kentucky	3	–	5	4	–	7
Georgia	3	–	5	5	–	6
Vanderbilt	0	–	8	2	–	9
Western Division
No. 11 Alabama xy	6	–	2	10	–	3
No. 12 LSU x	6	–	2	10	–	2
No. 24 Auburn	4	–	4	8	–	4
Mississippi State	3	–	5	5	–	6
Ole Miss	2	–	6	5	–	6
Arkansas	2	–	6	4	–	7
Championship: Florida 45, Alabama 30
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

The 1996 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team represented Mississippi State University as a member of the Western Division of the Southern Conference (SEC) during the 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by sixth-year head coach Jackie Sherrill, the Bulldogs compiled an overall record of 5–6 with a mark of 3–5 in conference play, placing fourth in the SEC's Western Division. Mississippi State played home games at Scott Field in Starkville, Mississippi.

On November 16, Mississippi State beat Alabama for the program's first win over the Crimson Tide since the 1980 season.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 7	7:00 p.m.	at Memphis*	Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN		W 31–10	38,388	^[1]
September 21	6:00 p.m.	Louisiana Tech*	Scott Field Starkville, MS		L 23–38	33,194	^[2]
September 28	11:30 a.m.	at South Carolina	Williams–Brice Stadium Columbia, SC	JPS	W 14–10	75,014	^[3]
October 5	6:00 p.m.	Georgia	Scott Field Starkville, MS	ESPN2	L 19–38	32,247	^[4]
October 12	11:30 a.m.	No. 18 Auburn	Scott Field Starkville, MS	JPS	L 15–49	40,728	^[5]
October 26	11:30 a.m.	at No. 13 LSU	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)	JPS	L 20–28	79,594	^[6]
November 2	1:30 p.m.	Northeast Louisiana*	Scott Field Starkville, MS		W 59–0	31,038	^[7]
November 9	12:30 p.m.	at Kentucky	Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY		L 21–24	26,500	^[8]
November 16	8:00 p.m.	No. 8 Alabama	Scott Field Starkville, MS (rivalry)	ESPN	W 17–16	40,050	^[9]
November 23	1:30 p.m.	Arkansas	Scott Field Starkville, MS		L 13–16 ^OT	30,103	^[10]
November 30	11:30 a.m.	at Ole Miss	Vaught–Hemingway Stadium Oxford, MS (Egg Bowl)	ESPN2	W 17–0	23,678	^[11]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[12]

Roster

1996 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
G	`59`	Brad Ainsworth	Sr
C	`53`	Eric Allen	So
WR	`19`	Lorenzo Armstead	Fr
G	`60`	Burt Ashley	Jr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DE	`94`	Terry Day	Sr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class

Head coach

Jackie Sherrill

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Roster
Last update: 1996-12-25

References

^ "Big plays lift Bulldogs past Memphis". Hattiesburg American. September 8, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "La. Tech surprises Bulldogs". Hattiesburg American. September 22, 1996. Retrieved July 15, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Blitzing Bulldogs drop Wright, South Carolina". The Charlotte Observer. September 29, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Georgia blisters Mississippi State". The Montgomery Advertiser. October 6, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Bulldogs forced to learn from adversity". The Dothan Eagle. October 13, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Opportunities, LSU slip by Miss. State". The Greenville News. October 27, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Rout ends frustration for Mississippi State". The Tennessean. November 3, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Tilghman alumni lead UK to 3rd win". The Paducah Sun. November 10, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "State stuns Bama!". The Clarion-Ledger. November 17, 1996. Retrieved February 20, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Arkansas nips Mississippi State". The Shreveport Times. November 24, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Dunn contains Ole Miss, but not his own emotions". The Anniston Star. December 1, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "1996 Mississippi State Bulldogs Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 10, 2024.