Last year's Mississippi State-Auburn match-up garnered plenty of national headlines but not for good reasons.
The Tigers edged the Bulldogs 3-2 on Sept. 13, 2008, with an Auburn 35-yard field goal and Mississippi State safety the only scoring plays.
Now they're set to square off at Auburn on Saturday as both teams open their Southeastern Conference schedule with new head coaches.
Auburn hired Gene Chizik, and Mississippi State tapped former Florida offensive coordinator Dan Mullen to head the program.
Mullen remembers watching last year's Tigers-Bulldogs match-up because the Gators had a bye weekend.
"Any game that's that close like that you love," Mullen said. "Even though as an offensive coach, you say, 'Boy what opportunities are there.' Mississippi State had opportunities to win, couldn't take advantage."
Mullen and Chizik said they haven't used any game film from 2008's low-scoring affair in preparation for this year's game, mainly because so much has changed.
"I don't put any stock into that," Chizik said. "That was last year, and for both Mississippi State and Auburn, we've both moved on. It's a new year, new people, new everything."
Mullen said he was more than impressed with the atmosphere in Starkville, Miss., during the Bulldogs' 45-7 win over Jackson State in the season opener.
"It was more than what I expected," Mullen said. "Getting off the buses for the Dog Walk was unbelievable. Just to see the masses of people turning out and the support we had, just the atmosphere we had - third-largest crowd in school history to support the team. Our guys came out and played really hard.
"You get your chance to be a head football coach and win your first football game, that's a dream come true."
JEFFERSON IMPRESSING MILES: LSU quarterback Jordan Jefferson was one of many SEC signal callers to take over their team this fall and will lead LSU in its SEC opener against Vanderbilt.
Tigers coach Les Miles was happy with the way Jefferson took care of the ball and managed the game.
The sophomore completed 11 for 19 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns and added 42 yards on eight rushes. Miles knows the quarterback's play will be key to his team's success.
"That position, year-in and year-out, speaks to the teams that win championships," Miles said. "He's been a playmaker for us. … I think the way the he throws it gives us a great opportunity to win games."
