Mississippi State football: Modern-era Mount Rushmore

Dak Prescott

There should be no doubt who the best player in Mississippi State football history is. Whether you’re talking about modern MSU history or a more comprehensive look at the Bulldogs, Dak Prescott should be discussed as the best player in program history.

Coming out of high school, Prescott was lightly recruited and wasn’t highly sought after. Listed at 6-3 and 230 pounds, Prescott had an offer to stay in his home state of Louisiana and play for the LSU Tigers, but then Tigers head coach Les Miles apparently wanted Dak to play tight end.

Then Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen must have liked what he saw in Prescott and gave him the chance to come to Starkville and play quarterback. That paid off for Mullen, Prescott, and the Bulldogs.

Dak didn’t see the field until 2012 when he would come in and spell then starting quarterback Tyler Russell in short-yardage situations and in special formations, somewhat similar to how Tim Tebow was used when Mullen was the offensive coordinator of the Florida Gators. In 2013, when Russell was injured in the season opener against Oklahoma State, Dak was thrown in as a starter.

The 2013 season was a messy one for Dak, Mullen, and the Bulldogs, but Dak had begun to show his potential at quarterback. Just days after his mother died after battling cancer, Dak took the field and went toe-to-toe with Johnny Football and Texas A&M. The Bulldogs came up short and Dak went down with an injury.

With his team at 5-6 and needing a victory for bowl eligibility, he’d return a few weeks later in the fourth quarter of the Egg Bowl and helped MSU tie things up with Ole Miss. In overtime, Prescott guided State to a win and then later to a bowl win over Rice in Memphis, ending a tumultuous 2013 season on a high note.

Prescott led the Bulldogs to remarkable success in 2014. MSU defeated No. 8 LSU in Death Valley, No. 6 Texas A&M, and No. 2 Auburn as the Bulldogs ascended to No. 1. Mississippi State won 10 games that season and Dak had shown everyone that he could be a successful college quarterback. He returned for another season in 2015 and continued to lead the Bulldogs to success.

By the time his time in Starkville was done, Prescott had ended his career with more than a handful of school records.

To name just a few, Dak has the most passing yards in a season (and the second-most passing yards in a season), the most passing yards in a career, the most total yards of offense in a career, and he’s responsible for more touchdowns than anyone else who has played football for the Bulldogs. His name is all over the Mississippi State record book.

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