Many Mississippi State fans felt slighted when their team, which finished the regular season at 9-2, slipped to the Peach Bowl when many were hoping for a New Year's Day Bowl in Florida. While that would have seemed like the proper placement for this squad, the Bulldogs took advantage of their trip to Atlanta to break a string of four losses in bowl games.
With about 11 minutes to play in the game, the Bulldogs and Clemson Tigers had played a low scoring contest. The only points in the game were a Bulldog field goal. That changed when Wayne Madkin evaded one sack, slipped through two more defenders and then outraced the Clemson defense to the pylon to put Mississippi State up 10-0.
Clemson would later score a touchdown cutting the lead to 10-7, but Madkin connected with Dontae Walker to provide the final 17-7 margin.
The win started a run of five straight bowl victories for Mississippi State, a streak that ended in the 2013 Gator Bowl.