Mississippi State entered the Liberty Bowl as a 10-point favorite over Texas Tech but was thoroughly dominated in a 34-7 defeat.

Greg McElroy, the former Alabama quarterback and co-host of the “McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning” radio show, didn’t mince words Wednesday when it came time to discuss the Bulldogs’ performance.

“Mississippi State at times last night played harder after the whistle than they did during the whistle,” McElroy said. “How does that make sense? Oh so now you want to expel some energy. Now I want to fight. … Where was that after the ball was snapped?”

McElroy added that not only did Mississippi State’s showing reflect poorly on the program, the Bulldogs also let down the SEC in what has been an awful start for the conference to the bowl season.

“Mississippi State’s performance last night was inexcusably bad,” McElroy said. “I know that they were depleted in certain spots. I get that. … Just play hard. Just give me effort.

“And I got news for you. If you’re a fan of the SEC, you need your conference to look good. It’s good for the league. … It matters when the league lays an egg.”