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9-13-2026 4:13am
MINNEAPOLIMEDIA SPORTS | Mississippi State Exposes Minnesota in 38-13 Rout at Huntington Bank Stadium
Tom Akaolisa
Editor
The Gophers surrendered 7 yards per play, three first-half touchdown passes and their first home loss since 2024 in their first meeting with the Bulldogs
MINNEAPOLIS, MN (September 13, 2026). Minnesota entered Saturday's matchup with Mississippi State looking for an early-season measure of itself against Southeastern Conference competition.
The measurement was uncomfortable.
Mississippi State defeated the Golden Gophers 38-13 at Huntington Bank Stadium, handing Minnesota its first home loss since 2024 and exposing problems that went considerably deeper than the final 25-point margin.
The Bulldogs averaged approximately 7 yards per play, quarterback Kamario Taylor threw for 227 yards and three touchdowns in the first half, and running back Fluff Bothwell rushed for 113 yards and two scores.
Minnesota fell to 1-1.
Mississippi State improved to 2-0.
It was the first football meeting between the programs.
Minnesota could not slow the Bulldogs
The central problem was Mississippi State's offensive efficiency.
Taylor repeatedly found opportunities in Minnesota's defense, while Anthony Evans III finished with seven catches for 121 yards and a touchdown.
Bothwell provided the complementary ground threat.
That combination left Minnesota trying to defend too much of the field at once.
Mississippi State had already opened its season with a 62-13 victory over Louisiana-Monroe. Saturday demonstrated that its offensive production was not confined to an overmatched opening opponent.
For Minnesota, the game provided the opposite lesson.
The Gophers could not consistently disrupt the Bulldogs' rhythm or produce enough offense of their own to turn the game into a sustained contest.
A useful loss only if Minnesota responds
September nonconference games are supposed to reveal weaknesses before conference play makes them more expensive.
Minnesota now has several.
The defense must determine why Mississippi State generated explosive production so efficiently.
The offense must find ways to sustain drives and create enough scoring pressure that one difficult defensive stretch does not put a game beyond reach.
And the Gophers must respond to the psychological difference between beating an opponent they are expected to beat and facing a team capable of punishing mistakes immediately.
The result does not define Minnesota's season in September.
It does change the questions surrounding it.
The Gophers had not lost at Huntington Bank Stadium since 2024.
Mississippi State did more than end that streak Saturday.
The Bulldogs provided Minnesota with its first serious examination of 2026.
The Gophers did not pass it.
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