One day after ESPN's Brett McMurphy reported it, BYU and Mississippi State officially announced Friday the schools will play a two-game football series in 2016 and 2017.
The Bulldogs will come to LaVell Edwards Stadium for the first game on Oct. 15, 2016, while the Cougars will head to Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi, on Oct. 14, 2017.
“It’s a great opportunity for our football team to play a very good SEC program,” BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe said in the school's news release. “It’s been more than a decade since we played Mississippi State, and we are excited to have them back on our schedule. Visiting Starkville will be a great experience for our football program and our fans, and we look forward to hosting the Bulldogs in Provo.”
BYU and Mississippi State have played twice before, with the Bulldogs beating BYU 44-28 in Provo during the 2000 season while the Cougars defeated Mississippi State 41-38 the next year.
McMurphy also reported Thursday that the SEC will count games against all independents — including BYU, Army and Notre Dame — toward its requirement that SEC teams play one Power 5 non-conference team per season. This came after McMurphy reported in January the ACC also would consider BYU a Power 5 opponent.
On Friday, BYU released a statement from Holmoe regarding the situation.
"The SEC's decision, along with the previous announcement from the ACC, is exciting news for Cougar Nation," Holmoe said. "It won't change our approach to scheduling because we are already playing as many P5 schools as possible; however, it might help our efforts in the future. BYU has a proven football tradition of excellence, as demonstrated by our No. 5 football national ranking in total wins over the past 40 years. Although we are independent in football, we believe we are a Power-5 caliber program and are grateful to the SEC and ACC for their willingness to consider us as such for football scheduling."
The Cougars' series with Mississippi State is the third future series with an SEC team BYU has announced in recent months. The Cougars will also play Missouri this year on Nov. 14 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, with a second matchup in Provo on Nov. 7, 2020; in addition, BYU will play LSU on Sept. 2, 2017, at NRG Stadium in Houston in the AdvoCare Kickoff.
Email: bjudd@deseretnews.com; Twitter: @brandonljudd