Mississippi State moved up two more spots to No. 14 in both major football polls on Sunday after starting the season 3-0.
The Bulldogs now prepare to face their first test in Southeastern Conference play at Kentucky and hope things go better than the first foray by Ole Miss inside the league.
The Rebels were waxed by the defending national champion, top-ranked Alabama, 62-7, at home on Saturday night.
After beating Louisiana-Lafayette 56-10 at home, MSU will begin its conference quest against unbeaten Kentucky on Saturday at 6 p.m. on ESPN2. The Bulldogs have won eight of the last nine games in the series including a 45-7 victory in Starkville last season.
Nick Fitzgerald completed 69.2 percent of his passes, rushed for 115 yards and accounted for three touchdowns against the Wildcats in 2017.
State is currently averaging 587.7 yards and 50 points per game on offense while only surrendering two touchdowns on defense during the first three games.
“I’m pleased with where we are at, but definitely not satisfied,” said MSU coach Joe Moorhead.
Kentucky (3-0, 1-0 SEC) is coming off a 48-10 win over Murray State in Lexington on Saturday and features the SEC’s second-leading rusher in Benny Snell Jr.
On Saturday, Fitzgerald’s 81 rushing yards he amassed by halftime were all he needed to surpass Michael Davis (1991-94) for fourth in school history for career rushing yards.
His four touchdowns, including when he ran for four against Arkansas in 2016, make him just the third such Southeastern Conference player in the last 20 years with multiple such games.
His 2,752 career yards leave him just 68 yards shy of third in school history.
Fitzgerald also got to display his arm. He completed four passes of at least 20 yards in the game’s first 20 minutes — but the statement came in the final two minutes of the half.
A 30-point halftime advantage was there for the Bulldogs’ taking if they could score a touchdown; with 18 seconds left to spare, Fitzgerald lofted one 39 yards to Stephen Guidry down the left side, who ran under a perfectly-placed ball as he crossed the goal line.
