No. 8 Alabama, No. 21 Mississippi St. meet in SEC showdown
No. 21 Mississippi State will face its toughest test to date when it hosts No. 8 Alabama in both teams' Southeastern Conference opener on Wednesday in Starkville, Miss.
The Bulldogs (11-1) are off to their best start since opening the 2003-04 season 13-0 en route to winning the SEC West Division's regular-season title, but they have yet to play a ranked team.
Playing ranked teams is nothing new to the Crimson Tide (10-2