STARKVILLE, Miss. (Interstat) — Kamario Taylor threw three touchdown passes and Mississippi State scored the final 14 points to beat Missouri 31-24 on Saturday at Davis Wade Stadium. The Bulldogs, the home team, improved to 4-0. The Tigers, the visiting team, fell to 2-1. An announced attendance of 60,417 watched the Football Bowl Subdivision game. Mississippi State trailed after Missouri’s third-quarter surge but answered with two fourth-quarter touchdowns to remain unbeaten.

Taylor completed 27 of 38 passes for 360 yards and three touchdowns and ran 10 times for 7 yards. The 6-foot-4, 230-pound quarterback from Macon, Miss., opened the scoring with a 43-yard strike to Sanfrisco Magee with 8:56 left in the first quarter. Missouri’s Blake Craig missed a 52-yard field goal on the Tigers’ next possession. Taylor then found Fluff Bothwell for an 11-yard touchdown with 24 seconds remaining in the opening quarter. Mississippi State led 14-0 after one.

Missouri got on the board in the second quarter. Craig made a 35-yard field goal with 7:59 remaining. Austin Simmons then connected with Donovan Olugbode for a 9-yard touchdown with 6:09 left, pulling the Tigers within four at halftime. Simmons, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound quarterback from Miami, Fla., finished 23 of 39 for 295 yards and three touchdowns. His favorite target was Cayden Lee, who caught 11 passes for 156 yards and two touchdowns.

The Tigers took the lead in the third quarter. Simmons hit Lee for a 21-yard touchdown at 10:50. Kyle Ferrie answered with a 28-yard field goal for Mississippi State, tying the game at 17. Simmons and Lee connected again, this time for 28 yards, with 2:53 left in the third. Craig’s extra point put Missouri ahead 24-17 entering the fourth quarter. Lee, a 5-foot-11, 175-pound receiver from Kennesaw, Ga., was Missouri’s top receiving threat throughout the night.

Mississippi State responded in the fourth. Bothwell powered in from 4 yards with 7:09 remaining to tie the game. Taylor then delivered the decisive blow, finding Magee for a 24-yard touchdown with 3:57 left. Ferrie’s extra point made it 31-24. Bothwell, a 5-foot-10, 219-pound running back from Oneonta, Ala., finished with 25 carries for 122 yards and a rushing touchdown and caught six passes for 55 yards and a receiving touchdown. Magee, a 6-foot-2, 200-pound receiver from McComb, Miss., had three catches for 76 yards and two touchdowns. Anthony Evans III added eight receptions for 114 yards. Marquis Johnson had four catches for 60 yards and a 23-yard kick return. Sam West caught two passes for 20 yards, and Zion Ragins had two receptions for 14 yards. Kolin Wilson ran four times for 15 yards and caught two passes for 21 yards.

Missouri’s offense also featured Jamal Roberts, who rushed 26 times for 95 yards and caught two passes for 38 yards. Naeshaun Montgomery had one reception for 7 yards, Brett Norfleet two for 19 yards and Shaun Terry II three for 21 yards. DaMarion Fowlkes returned two kickoffs for 87 yards. Brunno Reus punted four times for 192 yards. Blake Craig made a 35-yard field goal and converted his extra-point attempts after Missouri’s touchdowns. The Tigers moved the ball effectively at times but could not hold their third-quarter lead.

Defensively, Robert Woodyard Jr. led Missouri with 14 tackles. The 6-foot, 245-pound linebacker from Mobile, Ala., was followed by Nicholas Rodriguez, a 6-foot-1, 215-pound linebacker from Miami, Fla., who added 13 tackles. Kensley Louidor-Faustin, a 5-foot-11, 177-pound safety from Naples, Fla., had 12 tackles. Santana Banner, a 6-foot-3, 202-pound safety from Flint, Mich., made nine tackles, while Sione Laulea, a 6-foot-4, 190-pound defensive back from Mountain View, Calif., had eight. Dante McClellan recorded six, Elijah Dotson five, and Trajen Greco four tackles and an interception. Daeden Hopkins, a 6-foot-6, 237-pound defensive end from Hermann, Mo., finished with four tackles and 3.5 sacks. Jason Dowell had four tackles. Jalen Marshall added three. Marquis Gracial, Cavan Tuley and Langden Kitchen each made two tackles. Kamauryn Morgan had one tackle and half a sack, and Demarcus Johnson had one tackle and one quarterback hurry. Donta Simpson added a quarterback hurry. Cameron Keys, Jude James, Jaden Jones, Sterling Webb, Jahlil Florence and Malik Bryant each had one tackle.

Mississippi State’s defense was led by Jardin Gilbert and Tyler Lockhart, who each made nine tackles. Gilbert, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound defensive back from White Castle, La., helped anchor the secondary. Lockhart, a 6-foot-2, 225-pound linebacker from Kilmichael, Miss., also had half a sack. Jalen Smith, a 6-foot-1, 226-pound linebacker from Grayson, Ga., and Kendel Dolby, a 5-foot-11, 184-pound defensive back from Springfield, Ohio, each finished with eight tackles. Smith posted two quarterback hurries and Dolby one. Kelley Jones had eight tackles. DJ Reed and Amaree Williams each made seven. Marcus Williams, a 5-foot-11, 190-pound safety from Helena, Ala., had six tackles and one sack. Jaray Bledsoe, a 6-foot-4, 261-pound defensive lineman from Marlin, Texas, recorded five tackles and half a sack. The Bulldogs held Missouri to 24 points and made the late stops needed after the Tigers had moved ahead in the third quarter.

Missouri’s record moved to 2-1. Mississippi State improved to 4-0. The Bulldogs have won their first four games of the season. The Tigers will look to bounce back in their next game, while Mississippi State will try to remain unbeaten. The game featured a back-and-forth second half after a fast start by the home team.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Mississippi State 28, Missouri 24. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Missouri with a 69.4 percent probability to win. Missouri had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of +4.5. The total score of 55 went over the over/under line of 58.5.