STARKVILLE, Miss. — Brock Taylor did most of the scoring and Vanderbilt’s defense hung on at the end, as the Commodores beat Mississippi State 25-23 on Saturday in Starkville for their first Southeastern Conference win of the year.
Taylor made six field goals, a Vanderbilt record, including a 54-yarder in the third quarter and a 55-yarder, his longest of the season, with 1:46 left that pushed the lead to 25-17. It was the first time he has hit two kicks of 50-plus yards in the same game, and he now has 44 career field goals, third most in school history.
Mississippi State still had a shot. AJ Swann hit Sanfrisco Magee for a 30-yard touchdown with 37 seconds to go, but the two-point pass to tie it fell incomplete.
Vanderbilt controlled the first half, leading 16-0 behind three Taylor kicks and a 2-yard run by Sedrick Alexander. Jordan Matthews set up one of those field goals with his first college interception. The Commodores held the Bulldogs to 71 yards before the break and kept the ball for 39:55 overall.
Mississippi State made a run after halftime, getting a 65-yard touchdown from Swann to Magee and a fumble return for a score after a sack to pull within 16-14. Taylor answered with kicks of 54 and 34 yards.
Freshman quarterback Jared Curtis went 17 of 27 for 168 yards, and Mason Lewis made a team-high 10 tackles. Vanderbilt outgained the Bulldogs 328 yards to 297. Vanderbilt, now 4-5 and 1-5 in the SEC, snapped a five-game losing streak and won in Starkville for the first time since 1971.
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