The Final Mississippi State Morning Bell of the Year: December 31, 2023

Your daily briefing on what’s going on with Mississippi State sports, and how to keep up with the Bulldogs.

Today is … New Year's Eve! 

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Today’s Schedule

Men's Basketball: Bethune-Cookman at Mississippi State, 2 p.m., CT, SEC Network+, Live Video, Live Audio, Live Stats

Bulldogs Results

No games scheduled

Countdown to the Start of Baseball Season

48 Days

Did You Notice?

• Dak Prescott finished 26-for-38 for 345 yards and two touchdowns, and had an interception, as the Dallas Cowboys won an odd/controversial game against the Lions. One of the touchdowns was a 92-yard bomb to Cee Dee Lamb, who had a career-high 227 yards receiving. The other was to Brandin Cooks in the fourth quarter. But the game came down to a failed 2-point conversion by Detroit, after its first attempt was converted but negated by a penalty with 23 seconds remaining.

• PFF's list of the top 100 players set to enter free agency in the NFL has a familiar name at the top, defensive lineman Chris Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs. "It’s rare for a player of Jones’ caliber to reach unrestricted free agency, and Kansas City did not give up the right to franchise tag him for a second time when the two sides agreed to a reworked contract this past offseason. A tag for Jones would land north of $33 million, which perhaps helps him test the open market for the first time in his career. Jones is not only one of the best interior pass-rushers in the game right now; he’s one of the best ever." He's projected to land a four-year deal worth $120 million ($30 million per year), $80 million total guaranteed.

• According to Spotrac, the former Mississippi State player with the biggest earnings in baseball is Hunter Renfore, who recently signed a two-year/$13 million deal with the Kansas City Royals. That puts him slightly over $29 million in earnings. 

Daily Dose of Mike Leach:

"I try to improve each year. Basically, I’ll try to think of somewhere to travel. Try to travel somewhere major — some part of the world I haven’t seen. And I tell myself I’ll exercise and eat better, and I do off and on. I do eat right generally; the exercise part can be tricky, and that comes in spurts. Right now I’m walking home in the middle of a snowstorm, so I’m sure today it’s pretty good.For me, every day is a new year as far as a continuation of trying to improve. Like anybody, I’ll go sloppy or dormant for a month — or months. But I’m not a real big resolution guy. I’m kind of like, why wait until the new year, you know?"

We’ll Leave You with This…

DAK TO CEEDEE FOR A 92-YARD TD 😱#DAL pic.twitter.com/baVd5kRcd4

— ESPN (@espn) December 31, 2023

Coming and Going: Mississippi State 2024 Offseason Roster Tracker