The sports writing community has an awful penchant for throwing around the term historical in regards to certain victories.

The term gets tossed about more often than the pigskin in a run-and-shoot offense, so it starts to lose its punch.

Players and coaches loathe talking about the impact of a win or loss because they’re focused on just getting the job done, not worrying about the consequences, historic or otherwise.

But it wouldn’t be a stretch to call Mississippi State’s 14th bowl trip to Saturday’s Gator Bowl a historic opportunity for the program.

What would a victory over Michigan in the 2011 Gator Bowl mean for Mississippi State?

First, it’d give the Bulldogs a win over one of the sport’s marquee programs. Michigan leads the Football Bowl Subdivision (sounds like it needs a cul-de-sac called a playoff) with 883 wins since the program began in 1879. Despite a subpar 7-5 year, a win over Michigan is still a win over a program with 39 bowl appearances and 11 national titles.

Speaking of those struggles, something else to watch will be Rich Rodriguez’s job status. He’s just 15-21 in his three years in Michigan after taking West Virginia to the cusp of a national title appearance just a few years ago. With NCAA sanctions for excessive practice time and a different athletic director in place than the one who hired him, Rodriguez likely needs a victory Saturday just to keep his job.

As for the benefits for the Bulldog program, the perception of the Mississippi State program will definitely be boosted. As the old cliché goes, perception is often reality and the perception of a New Year’s Day bowl game in Florida is a very strong one, even if the opponent is a much-weakened powerhouse and the game isn’t a BCS bowl.

The Bulldogs haven’t played in a New Year’s Day bowl since 1999.

That perception bleeds over to the most important chore coming up for the coaching staff, recruiting. The Bulldogs have put together a stellar class so far, but a victory will go a long way toward convincing in-state, uncommitted blue-chippers like Madison Central wide receiver Tobias Singleton to sign. A victory might even help the Bulldogs’ brand down the road with out-of-state recruits, especially the ones in the Sunshine State.

The extra practice time will only benefit future stars like redshirt quarterback Dylan Favre and be a nice springboard for the youngsters going into spring practice. This extra practice time is even more important since the Bulldogs will be looking for replacements for defensive stalwarts Chris White and Pernell McPhee and offensive lineman Derek Sherrod.

So while hoisting a trophy and pocketing a nice bowl payout of approximately $2.5 million will be a great feeling, the effects could linger on for years to come.

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Steve Wilson is sports editor of The Vicksburg Post. You can follow him on Twitter at vpsportseditor. He can be reached at 601-636-4545, ext. 142 or at swilson@vicksburgpost.com.