1981 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team

1981 Mississippi State Bulldogs football
1981 Mississippi State Bulldogs football
Hall of Fame Classic, W 10–0 vs. Kansas
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 17
Record	8–4 (4–2 SEC)
Head coach	Emory Bellard (3rd season);
Defensive coordinator	Melvin Robertson (3rd season)
Home stadium	Scott Field; Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium
	Seasons ← 1980 1982 →

The 1981 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team represented Mississippi State University as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by third-year head coach Emory Bellard, the Bulldogs compiled an overall record of 8–4, with a mark of 4–2 in conference play, and finished third in the SEC.

1981 Southeastern Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 6 Georgia +	6	–	0	–	0	10	–	2	–	0
No. 7 Alabama +	6	–	0	–	0	9	–	2	–	1
Mississippi State	4	–	2	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
Tennessee	3	–	3	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
Florida	3	–	3	–	0	7	–	5	–	0
Auburn	2	–	4	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Kentucky	2	–	4	–	0	3	–	8	–	0
Ole Miss	1	–	4	–	1	4	–	6	–	1
LSU	1	–	4	–	1	3	–	7	–	1
Vanderbilt	1	–	5	–	0	4	–	7	–	0

+ – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 5	Memphis State*	No. 14	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	W 20–3	42,507	^[1]
September 19	Vanderbilt	No. 14	Scott Field Starkville, MS	W 29–9	32,045	^[2]
September 26	Florida	No. 12	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	W 28–7	45,250	^[3]
October 3	Missouri*	No. 9	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	L 3–14	40,776	^[4]
October 10	at Colorado State*	No. 19	Hughes Stadium Fort Collins, CO	W 37–27	24,761	^[5]
October 17	No. 13 Miami (FL)*	No. 16	Scott Field Starkville, MS	W 14–10	33,225	^[6]
October 24	at Auburn	No. 9	Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, AL	W 21–17	58,000	^[7]
October 31	at No. 8 Alabama	No. 7	Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL (rivalry)	L 10–13	60,210	^[8]
November 7	vs. No. 20 Southern Miss*	No. 15	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	L 6–7	64,112	^[9]
November 14	at LSU		Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)	W 17–9	71,303	^[10]
November 21	vs. Ole Miss		Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (Egg Bowl)	L 17–21	61,153	^[11]
December 31	vs. Kansas*		Legion Field Birmingham, AL (Hall of Fame Classic)	W 10–0	41,672	^[12]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

1981 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
QB	`13`	John Bond	So
C	`58`	Kent Hull

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DE	`79`	Glen Collins
LB	`99`	Johnie Cooks

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class