First-And-10 To Know: State vs. Northern Illinois

STARKVILLE – Mississippi State is rolling. The Bulldogs have won three in a row to start the season and are looking to polish off a perfect non-conference slate this weekend.

MSU hosts Northern Illinois at 3:15 p.m. CT on Saturday at Davis Wade Stadium. The game will be televised by SEC Network.

Ahead of the contest, let's have a look at 10 items to be aware of headed into State's showdown against the Huskies:

A win Saturday would give MSU its first 4-0 start since 2014. That season, the Bulldogs began the year with victories over Southern Miss, UAB, South Alabama and LSU. Of course, State rode their early '14 momentum all the way to a 9-0 start and the school's first-ever No. 1 ranking – including earning the distinction of being the first-ever top-ranked team in the College Football Playoff rankings.
Speaking of a potential 4-0 start, it's a feat that hasn't happened often at Mississippi State. The Bulldogs have only started 4-0 seven times in school history entering Saturday's game.
Saturday marks the first-ever meeting between Mississippi State and Northern Illinois. Also of note, this will be the Huskies' first game inside the state of Mississippi in more than 30 years. The last time NIU played in the Magnolia State was on Aug. 31, 1995, at Southern Miss.
The Huskies come to Starkville with a 1-1 record so far this season. They began the year with a 19-17 win over Holy Cross, then fell 20-9 at Maryland. Northern Illinois had an open week last weekend ahead of battling MSU.
Northern Illinois head coach Thomas Hammock characterizes NIU as a developmental program, and that could be on display this week. Including redshirts, a total of 23 players on Saturday's NIU depth chart are either freshmen or sophomores.
At least three Bulldogs are incredibly familiar with the Huskies. A trio of players on the MSU roster previously played for Northern Illinois. Those are wide receiver Cam Thompson, defensive lineman Ray Thomas and linebacker Nevaeh Sanders.
Mississippi State will be looking to get off to another fast start as the Dawgs have done in every game so far this season. MSU has outscored the opposition 48-3 in the first quarter through the first three games of the year. State has outscored foes 72-13 in the first half.
While MSU has scored early and often this year, the Bulldog defense's improvements since last season have been just as big a part of State's 3-0 start. MSU is allowing 125 yards less per game through the first three contests of this season as opposed to 2024, all while facing a very similar schedule (a game each against a Power 4, Group of 6 and FCS opponent). For more on State's defensive improvements, CLICK HERE.
Will Mississippi State start the game on offense again this week? You'd be wise to assume so. The Bulldogs have started all 15 games of the head coach Jeff Lebby era on offense and have received the opening kickoff in 19 straight games overall. The last time State didn't receive an opening kickoff was on Oct. 28, 2023, in a game at Auburn.
Following Saturday's game, the SEC gauntlet begins for Mississippi State. The Bulldogs host Tennessee on Saturday, Sept. 27, to begin a string of eight-straight league games. When combined with MSU's non-conference contests, State's schedule is among the nation's toughest. MSU is one of only four teams nationally with at least seven preseason Associated Press Top 25 teams on the slate. Six of MSU's eight SEC games are against teams currently ranked in the AP Top 25, with five of those opponents in the top 15 and three in the top 10.

Mississippi State University Athletics

First-And-10 To Know: State vs. Northern Illinois

Players Mentioned

Nevaeh Sanders

Ray Thomas

Cam Thompson

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