Mississippi State vs. Missouri: Score, Highlights and Twitter Reaction

The No. 20 Mississippi State Bulldogs added to the Missouri Tigers' season of misery Thursday with a 31-13 victory at Memorial Stadium in Columbia, Missouri. The win moved Mississippi State to 3-2 in the SEC and 7-2 overall.

Winning the SEC West Division is unlikely, as the LSU Tigers are sitting on top at 4-0 with a victory over the Bulldogs in their back pocket, but finishing in second place is not out of the question for Mississippi State. 

All it can do is focus on the task at hand, and for Dak Prescott, that meant dominating one of the best defenses in the conference Thursday night. The quarterback led the way for the Bulldogs, tying a career high with four passing touchdowns and reaching a milestone in the process, per ESPN College Football:

However, that was not the only milestone he surpassed on the night, according to the SEC Network's Twitter account:

Prescott's play and the final score made it look like an easy win for the Bulldogs, but that wasn't the story in the first half, when they led 14-13. Some nasty weather helped keep the game close, and the Missouri fans who toughed out the downpour were treated to an entertaining first half, per ESPN College Football:

Before the weather took a turn, Prescott exposed the normally stellar Missouri defense on a play-action pass and found Fred Ross for a 36-yard score on the first drive of the game. Here's the receiver's wide-open catch, per ESPN:

Leading 7-6 in the second quarter, Prescott connected with De'Runnya Wilson for his second touchdown pass in what looked like a monsoon, and it appeared as though the rout was on. Here is the incredible catch by Wilson, per ESPN College Football:

The big story coming into the game was the fact that Missouri had not scored a touchdown since a 24-10 victory Oct. 3 against the South Carolina Gamecocks. ESPN College Football put the touchdown drought into perspective:

The silver lining for the Tigers is the fact that they did finally score a touchdown with one minute, 50 seconds left in the second quarter on a 14-yard run by Russell Hansbrough. The SEC Network captured the special moment:

Gabe DeArmond of PowerMizzou.com overlooked the ineptitude and pointed out that, at the time, Missouri had a shot at winning the game:

Then the third quarter came, and Prescott put the game out of reach. He found Wilson from five yards out at the 12:20 mark. Then he found a wide-open Fred Brown nine minutes later for the 100th touchdown of his career, helping the team take a 31-13 lead.

The lead held, and the 31 points were the most scored against the Tigers this season. It wasn't just a season high in points allowed for Missouri, either, per Brandon Kiley of KTGR's The Sports Wire:

Prescott finished with 303 yards, but more worrisome for Missouri was the fact that it was the team's fourth straight loss. Despite a 3-0 start to the season, the Tigers are now 4-5 and in jeopardy of missing out on a bowl for just the second time since 2004.

Mississippi State has won four in a row and could grab a statement win next week on the road against the No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide. It will be easier said than done, but a win against the SEC powerhouse would erase the memory of a 1-2 conference start.

Prescott has now played himself back into the Heisman Trophy race, according to ESPN analyst Jesse Palmer (via Michael Carvell of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution):

LSU running back Leonard Fournette and his 1,352 yards and 15 touchdowns may have something to say about that, but Prescott was undoubtedly the reason the Bulldogs won Thursday. He also remains the key to Mississippi State turning what once looked like a mediocre season into a memorable one.

Postgame Reaction

Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen didn't mince words after the game, per ESPN. "I'm juiced, man," Mullen said. "We work hard to try and get some wins, and when you get them, I love it."

Mullen's counterpart at Missouri, Gary Pinkel, didn't make excuses after the team's fourth straight loss, per the school's Twitter account:

For all the love Prescott received after the game, he was quick to praise his wide receiver Wilson, who finished with four receptions for 102 yards and two touchdowns, per ESPN: "I've said it year-round. I'll take him versus any cornerback one-on-one, at any time."