STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Sophomore Danny Sparkman passed for two touchdowns and Don Glosson kicked three field goals Saturday to boost Memphis State to a 30-13 win over Mississippi State, the seventh straight loss for the struggling Bulldogs.
Sparkman, who completed 10-of-18 for 198 yards, hit on a 50-yard bomb to Derrick Crawford in the third quarter, then struck on a 3-yard toss to Crawford in the fourth period as the surprising Tigers improved their record to 4-4.
Glosson connected on a 28-yard field goal in the opening period, added a 37-yarder in the second quarter and kicked a 21-yarder with 4:49 left in the game.
Memphis State got its first touchdown on a 2-yard burst by James 'Punkin' Williams with just 1:59 gone in the first quarter. The Tigers took the opening kickoff and went 79 yards in five plays, including a 49-yard pass from Sparkman to Enis Jackson.
Freshman Artis Cosby kicked field goals of 35 and 50 yards to keep the Bulldogs, now 2-7, in striking range at 13-6 at halftime.
The Bulldogs' lone touchdown came on a 1-yard keeper by quarterback John Bond at the start of the fourth quarter to cut the Tigers' lead to 20-13.
But the Tigers then went 77 yards in 11 plays for their last touchdown on the 3-yard pass to Crawford. Sparkman hit a 32-yard throw to Clyde Avant during the drive.
Williams gained 56 yards on 17 carries to lead the Tigers' ground attack, while Crawford caught six passes for 114 yards.
Glosson's first field goal followed a pass interception by Tiger cornerback Donnie Elder. His second field goal, with 1:38 left in the second period, came after Mississippi State's Tim Cutts fumbled while trying to punt deep in his own territory.
Memphis State coach Rex Dockery said, 'I'm with the entire team - we did what we had to do to win.
'This is the second week in a row our defense gave up the yards but not the touchdowns.'
Dockery said the Tiger offense 'is getting better every week. We've lived on the big play. But look at the quarterback and his protection. This is the best any team has rushed us but we did a better job in the second half at stopping them.'
The Tigers, who have not had a winning season since 1977, already have equalled the number of victories they posted in the last three years combined. They went 1-10 in 1982 and 1981 following a 2-9 record in 1980.
'Our goal has been to have a winning season,' said Dockery, whose team still has three games remaining against Cincinnati, Arkansas State and Louisville. 'If we finish 7-4 I think some bowl should look at us. We definitely should be given some consideration.'
Mississippi State coach Emory Bellard said the Tigers are a good football team and 'did a great job.'
'We played just about as sorry as you can play,' Bellard added. 'There are many facets to football, and I've done about as sorry a job in all of them as I can possibly do. I apologize to all Mississippi State fans and followers and I'm sorry for this.'
'There were just to many fundamental things that we didn't do well, and that's my responsibility,' Bellard said.
Defensively sophomore linebacker Eric Fairs led Memphis State with 9 solo tackles and 4 assists, while safety Percy Nabors had 9 solos and 3 assists. For Mississppi State, linebacker Billy Jackson had 15 solo tackles and 5 assists, and linebacker Calvin Zanders was credited with 11 unassisted tackles and 6 assists.
Bond completed 7 of 21 passes for 79 yards in the losing effort but had 2 interceptions. Halfback Lamar Windham was leading rusher for the Bulldogs with 91 yards on 11 carries.
