STARKVILLE — On a day of firsts in Starkville, it was Mississippi State that got to go home happy.

The Bulldogs used five turnovers, two bad punt snaps and a stifling defense that held Jackson State to 194 yards to beat the Tigers 45-7 on Saturday and hand Dan Mullen a victory in his first game as a head coach.

“I’m always going to be indebted to this team because they won my first game,” Mullen said. “I thought our defense played really well. On offense, we have a ways to go. We were really sloppy first half. We had two turnovers, we had a touchdown called back because of a holding penalty and we missed two field goals. In the second half, we competed and cleaned some things up.”

It was the first time teams from the Southwestern Athletic Conference and Southeastern Conference have played in football. Although Jackson State, one of the SWAC’s best teams, felt it had a chance against a lower-tier SEC program like Mississippi State, the huge difference in talent was obvious.

The third-largest crowd in school history (52,232) watched the Bulldogs score more points than they have since a 51-13 win over Jacksonville State on Sept. 4, 2002.

Through three quarters, Jackson State (0-1) was limited to just 97 yards in total offense, and had lost three fumbles and an interception. That was enough to put them in a 35-0 hole. The last of JSU’s five turnovers, an interception by Corey Broomfield, was returned 43 yards for an MSU touchdown with 3:34 left in the game. The Tigers were also penalized 15 times for 95 yards.

“This was a learning experience and we made a lot of mental mistakes out there.” said JSU receiver Keenan Tillman, who had the Tigers’ best play of the game on a 52-yard reception from quarterback Trae Rutland.

Rutland, who started his college career at Mississippi State before transferring to JSU, finished 8-of-19 for 132 yards and two interceptions. Terrence Davis scored Jackson State’s only points on a 16-yard run against Mississippi State’s second-team defense early in the fourth quarter.

Mississippi State (1-0), which opens SEC play next week at Auburn, used two quarterbacks effectively. Chris Relf got most of the snaps in the second half after Tyson Lee complained of shoulder spasms. Relf was 7-of-10 passing for 75 yards and three touchdowns, and also ran for 82 yards and a score on 12 carries. Lee was 8-of-13 for 82 yards and State finished with 359 yards in total offense.

“I knew I was going to get to play a lot, and it became even more after Tyson got hurt,” Relf said. “I felt real comfortable out there.”

Mullen said the play of Relf and Lee ensured more playing time for both of them.

“We’re going to be a two-quarterback system for awhile. I was pleased with both Chris and Tyson,” Mullen said.

Mississippi State took control of the game late in the second quarter with a 12-play, 79-yard drive. Robert Elliott, who’s had two injury-plagued seasons at MSU, got the march moving with a 17-yard run and a 15-yard reception from Lee. The Bulldogs later scored on Relf’s 5-yard run and Sean Brauchle’s kick made it 14-0 with 48 seconds left in the first half.

Two Jackson State turnovers set up easy scoring drives for the Bulldogs and extended the lead to 28-0 just seven minutes deep into the third quarter. Elliott’s 7-yard TD run increased the lead to 21-0 to cap a 20-yard march set up by a Charles Mitchell interception.

A fumble by Rutland gave State the ball at the JSU 34 and Relf capitalized by hitting Marcus Green for a 19-yard TD pass to up the lead to 28-0 after Brauchle’s fourth PAT.

Kicking game miscues plagued both teams in the first half. Jackson State botched its first two punt snaps, leading to a 12-yard Relf to Chad Bumphis TD pass and a missed field goal by Brauchle.

JSU’s best play of the half came on a 52-yard pass from Rutland to Tillman to the State 37. But on the next play, Anthony Mayes, a former Hinds AHS star, fumbled after a reception.

MSU took the ball and moved into scoring territory but ended up missing a field goal.

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Contact Jeff Byrd at jbyrd@vicksburgpost.com