College Football News Preview 2020: Previewing, predicting, and looking ahead to the Mississippi State Bulldogs season with what you need to know.
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– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Schedule Analysis
– Mississippi State Previews 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015
2019 Record: 6-7 overall, 3-5 in SEC
Head Coach: Mike Leach, 1st year, 0-0
2019 CFN Final Opinion Ranking: 60
2019 CFN Final Season Formula Ranking: 56
2019 CFN Preview Ranking: 19
No one knows what’s going to happen to the 2020 college football season. We’ll take a general look at where each team stands – doing it without spring ball to go by – while crossing our fingers that we’ll all have some well-deserved fun this fall. Hoping you and yours are safe and healthy.
5. College Football News Preview 2020: Mississippi State Bulldogs Offense 3 Things To Know
– Okay, SEC, get ready for what’s coming. Mississippi State is going to throw, and it’ll keep throwing, and then it’ll throw a little more.
When Leach took over Washington State in 2012, the team was awful, but it finished ninth in the nation in passing. It finished fourth in 2013, and was No. 1 in four of the next six years, was second in one of the off seasons, and third in the other.
The system worked when he was an offensive coordinator at Kentucky and then Oklahoma, it worked at Texas Tech, and then at Washington State. But without a spring practice to tune up, it might be a bit rocky for a while. It also doesn’t help to have the likely starting quarterback around.
CFN in 60 Video: Mississippi State Bulldogs Preview
– It’s not a rock-solid lock that Stanford transfer KJ Costello will take over the starting quarterback job right away, but be stunned if he’s not only the No. 1 guy, but also a national star. It’s a fluid situation considering Costello had to graduate from Stanford first before joining on, and other options want a shot at getting to run the high-octane attack.
Keytaon Thompson transferred to Virginia and Logan Burnett left for TCU, but leading passer Garrett Shrader is back after throwing for just 1,170 yards and eight scores with five interceptions – he was second on the team with 587 rushing yards and six touchdowns – and Jalen Mayden is still around, but it’ll almost certainly be Costello throwing it. Now the team needs the guys who can catch it.
The system makes the receivers, but the receivers are there to make the system work, even if they’re not experienced. Leading yardage receiver Osirus Mitchell is back, and then it’ll be all up to the new parts with four of the top five targets from last year gone. JUCO transfers Caleb Ducking and Malik Heath will get a shot at time early on, and Alabama transfer Tyrell Shavers has the upside to be a star right away.
– Where does Kylin Hill fit into the mix? One of the nation’s best running backs put off the NFL for a year after running for 1,350 yards and ten scores, and he caught 18 passes with a touchdown.
Like Logan Marchi at Washington State, Hill should be a do-it-all back with a whole lot more passes coming his way. Redshirt freshman Lee Witherspoon is the likely No. 2, but Leach’s offenses usually utilize just one back.
Last year’s like was 13th in the SEC and 93rd in the nation in sacks allowed – that’s about to change. The front five loses Tyre Phillips at one tackle and Darryl Williams at center, and the whole group has to tweak what it does. Charles Cross is a former great recruit who should be fine in place of Phillips, but it’ll take the rest of the offseason to lock in on a center.
NEXT: College Football News Preview 2020: Mississippi State Bulldogs Defense 3 Things To Know
4. College Football News Preview 2020: Mississippi State Bulldogs Defense 3 Things To Know
– It’s not like defense was optional at Washington State under Mike Leach, but it just wasn’t consistent. On the flip side, he has never been the head coach of a team with the type of defensive talent he’s inheriting in Starkville.
It was a rebuilding season for MSU after an epic 2018 run, but there’s still more work to do after losing five of the top seven tacklers. On the plus side, the line has the upside to be a killer as long as the young talent can rise up and produce right away.
Ends Marquiss Spencer, Kobe Jones, and JUCO transfer Jordan Davis are good ones to start with, and there’s a whole lot of talent waiting in the wings. The tackles could be even nastier despite losing Lee Autry. Fabien Lockett and Nathan Pickering are likely going to be the main men early on, but this is a deep group – again, Leach has never had talent like this to work with.
– The Bulldogs caught a massive break when leading tackler and heart-and-soul leader type Erroll Thompson decided to come back for another year. He’s a 250-pound thumper in the middle of the linebacking corps, but losing Willie Gay – even though he missed half of last season – to the Kansas City Chiefs hurts. Depending on the alignment, this is where JUCO transfer Jordan Davis could fit in – he can play end or outside linebacker.
– The secondary gave up way too many big plays and allowed 247 yards per game, but at least there’s experience. Top tacklers Jaquarius Landrews and Brian Coles are done, but the young corners who took their lumps are back with a year of experience.
CJ Morgan is a good-tackling safety, and junior Marcus Murphy is a big performer when he’s healthy – he was in-and-out for most of last year.
NEXT: College Football News Preview 2020: Top Mississippi State Bulldogs Players
College Football News Preview 2020: Top Mississippi State Bulldogs Players
Best Mississippi State Bulldogs Offensive Player
QB KJ Costello, Sr.
Kylin Hill is the easy call for the team’s best offensive player, but you know how the Mike Leach offense rolls – the quarterback is the thing.
It’s been our offseason call from the moment Costello decided to transfer from Stanford – here’s the guy-to-watch-out-for NFL draft prospect. He has the 6-5, 222-pound size, the smarts, the deep arm, and the ability to take his game to a whole other level as long as he can stay in one piece.
Never right last year after getting beaten up and battered in the opener against Northwestern, he only threw for 1,038 yards and six scores. But the year before he bombed away for 3,540 yards and 29 touchdowns.
2. RB Kylin Hill, Sr.
3. WR Osirus Mitchell, Sr.
4. WR Tyrell Shavers, Jr.
5. OT Charles Cross, RFr.
Best Mississippi State Bulldogs Defensive Player
LB Erroll Thompson, Sr.
The offense might get all the attention early on, but this will be Thompson’s defense. It’s a slight shocker that he’s back and didn’t try out the NFL world, but he’s the captain and the team leader as long as he’s around.
The tough 6-1, 250-pound man in the middle of the Mississippi State defense led the team with 84 tackles after coming up with 133 in his first two seasons, and he can get to the quarterback, too.
2. DE Marquiss Spencer, Sr.
3. DT Fabien Lovett, Soph.
4. DT Nathan Pickering, Soph.
5. S Marcus Murphy, Jr.
NEXT: College Football News Preview 2020: Mississippi State Bulldogs Keys To The Season
College Football News Preview 2020: Mississippi State Bulldogs Keys To The Season
Biggest Key To The Mississippi State Bulldogs Offense
Get the system going. It’s not all going to be smooth right away, and there will be times when it completely bogs down and doesn’t go anywhere, but this is going to be a process.
No one is going to be patient – but everyone has to be patient.
There’s almost certainly going to be a new starting quarterback, mostly new receivers in the mix, and most of all, a change in how the offensive line has to block to make the whole thing work.
Even if the team had a normal run of spring practices and a regular offseason there would be problems, but September is forgivable enough to get everyone up to speed before the SEC season kicks in full force.
Don’t forget that there’s an NFL running back in Kylin Hill to rely on, but Mississippi State got Mike Leach for a reason. Get the system going, wait for it to come together, and expect the payoff to come.
Biggest Key To The Mississippi State Bulldogs Defense
Get everyone in shape and ready to be on the field a whole lot. The defense might have taken a major step back after an epic 2018, but it was still great at forcing takeaways and allowed 24 points or fewer six times.
And it was rested – Mississippi State was 29th in the nation in time of possession. Time of possession doesn’t mean much to Mike Leach.
The offense is going to go fast, try to strike quickly, and operate with a quickened tempo. Especially early on, it might not work all that well considering it’s going to need time to get the timing down – there will be a whole slew of three-and-outs, and they’ll happen fast.
Teams are going to try to hammer on the Bulldog D, control the clock, and keep that offense off the field as much as possible. MSU has to be prepared for a whole lot of lopsided time of possession issues, and the defense has to be conditioned to stay on the field.
Key Mississippi State Bulldogs Player To A Successful Season
WR Osirus Mitchell, Sr.
Of course the freaking quarterback is the most important player in the Mike Leach offense, but no matter who the choice is, he’ll be great as long as he has receivers to throw to.
Alabama transfer Tyrell Shavers has superstar potential, and JUCO transfer Malik Heath should find a role right away, but for a team that’s missing four of the top five receivers from last year, it’s on the 6-5, 210-pound Mitchell to immediately be the No. 1 guy.
He caught 29 passes for 430 yards and six touchdowns, and that led the team in yards and scores. If all goes right in the new attack, he gets that in a few games.
Key Game To The Mississippi State Bulldogs Season
Texas A&M, Oct. 3
Call this a tone-setter.
Beating NC State early on in Raleigh is one, and getting by Arkansas in Mike Leach’s SEC opener is another, Texas A&M is the game the Bulldogs really need. They should be 4-0 going into this – 3-1 if there’s a loss to the Wolfpack – and there’s a week off to follow. And then …
At Alabama, at LSU, Auburn. By this point in the season, the offense had better be working.
The Bulldogs lost to the Aggies last year, but they’ve won three of their last four in the series.
– Mississippi State Bulldogs Schedule Breakdown & Analysis
2019 Mississippi State Fun Stats
– MSU 3rd Quarter Scoring: 56 – MSU 4th Quarter Scoring 103
– Fumbles: Opponents 25 (lost 14) – MSU 21 (lost 13)
– Time of Possession: MSU 31:39 – Opponents 28:20
NEXT: College Football News Preview 2020: Mississippi State Bulldogs Win Total Prediction, What Will Happen
1. College Football News Preview 2020: Mississippi State Bulldogs Win Total Prediction, What Will Happen
CFN in 60 Video: Mississippi State Bulldogs Preview
There are two ways to look at the hiring of Mike Leach.
On the one side, the guy has never won anything.
In 18 years as an FBS head coach at Texas Tech and Washington State, he has as many conference championships as you do.
He has never coached a team in a conference title game, has just one top ten finish, just two double-digit win seasons, and for all the flash and fun, there isn’t even an outright division title.
And then there’s the flip side – he has never come close to having as much talent to coach as he has now at Mississippi State.
Nah, Leach and MSU aren’t going take over the SEC West and start winning conference championships – at least not right away – but there’s reason for the big boys to freak out.
Basically, Mississippi State is now going to be a problem to deal with. Even if the championship runs aren’t there, this is going to be a team that can pull off a win against anyone because the system is so dangerous.
Here comes the grand experiment that was worth wondering about when the Tennessee job became open a few years ago. What’s going to happen when the system matches up with a team full of top-shelf recruits on the lines?
Set The Mississippi State Bulldogs Regular Season Win Total At … 7
Bet at BetMGM Win Total Line: 6.5
Good luck figuring out how quickly this will all come together, but assume the Bulldogs will be stronger after a 6-7 season.
On the defensive side, the line should be a whole lot better, the secondary is more experienced, and having Erroll Thompson around in the linebacking corps is a big deal.
There were be duds, but the offense is going to eventually work. How many of the early games can the Bulldogs win to get there?
Beating New Mexico, Arkansas, Tulane – and in late November – Alabama A&M is a must for a base of four wins. Even in Oxford, beating Ole Miss is a need-win, and taking out Missouri at home has to be done.
And then figure that the offense is just enough to come up with one shocker in a shootout, and the team is good enough to pull out a road win over NC State or Kentucky on the road.
Get ready to have some fun.
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– Schedule Analysis
