BEDDING — Inside the Home

Mississippi State

2010 Mississippi State Football Predictions

The Mississippi State Bulldogs head into the 2010 season with 14 starters back to a team that finished 5-7 overall and 3-5 in SEC play. Head coach Dan Mullen enters into his second season as the head coach of the Bulldogs, and will try and get this team back to a bowl game for the first time since 2007. It won't be easy for the Bulldogs playing in the SEC West, and will likely need to pull off a couple upsets to get to six wins this season. Here is a quick look at what the Bulldogs will send to the field in 2010, plus my prediction on where they finish up the season in the SEC.

Offense:

The Bulldogs return seven starters to an offense that performed better than expected in 2009, as the Bulldogs went from scoring just 15.3 points in 2008 to 25.6 points a game in 2009. The Bulldogs will have to replace quarterback Tyson Lee, and it looks like a two way battle between junior Chris Relf and red-shirt freshman Tyler Russell. Relf appears to have the early edge, but either way whoever wins the job figures to do better than Lee did in 2009, as the Bulldogs averaged just 144 yards a game passing.

The Bulldogs bring back their top two threats at the receiver position in sophomore wide out Chad Bumphis and junior  tight end Marcus Green. These two combined for seven of the teams 9 touchdown receptions in 2009, and the numbers will only get better if the quarterback play improves. Senior Leon Berry is also back at the wide out position, while sophomore Chris Smith looks to get in on the action this season.

The Bulldogs offense was all about the run last year, as they averaged 228 yards a game on the ground, but it will be hard to replace the production of running back Anthony Dixon, as he ran for a team best 1,391 yards and 12 scores in 2009. Junior Vick Ballard looks to have the early edge to take over, but should get plenty of help from junior Robert Elliot and red-shirt freshman Montrell Conner.

One reason you have to believe the Bulldogs will be able to run the ball well again in 2010, is the fact that they have four starters back on the offensive line, led by senior left tackle Derek Sherrod and junior left guard Quentin Saulsberry. Sophomore Tobias Smith will likely be the new starter on the line at right guard.

Defense:

Up front he Bulldogs will feed off of senior defensive end Pernell McPhee, who led the team with five sacks in 2009. For this unit to improve off last season sophomore defensive tackles Josh Boyd and Fletcher Cox have to play well against the run. At the other defensive end spot look for junior Sean Ferguson to step in after recording one sack and 4.5 tackles for loss in backup duty last season.

At linebacker the Bulldogs bring back senior middle linebacker Chris White and senior strong-side linebacker KJ Wright, who are the top two leading tacklers back from last season. Look for sophomore Cameron Lawrence to start on the weak side for the departed Jamar Chaney.

Only one change will have to be made in the secondary for the Bulldogs, as senior Maurie Langston looks to step in and start opposite of sophomore Corey Broomfield, who is one of the better young corners in all of the SEC. Also keep an eye out for junior strong safety Charles Mitchell, as he figures to be one of the top safeties in the SEC this season.

Prediction – 5th SEC West: I think the Bulldogs are going to surprise some teams in 2010,  as I look for them to be even more competitive than they were in 2009. The problem is the other teams in this conference are some of the best teams in the entire country, and I just can't see this team finishing out of the bottom two teams in the West.

For a detailed look at the 2010 SEC Predictions check this out.

Also be sure stay up to date on all the college football odds right here this season. And check in often for more expert college football picks to help make your betting experience a winner.

About the Author

If you want winning NFL picks to help you cash in over the NFL odds, sign up for a premium subscription today.

What section do the visitors sit in at Mississippi State football games?

I've never been to an MSU game, and I'll be going to the Auburn game this year. I haven't been able to find anything on the internet that list what section the visitors sit in there.

Most visitors will sit in the upper deck. A small number of visiting fans are put on the very edge of the stands near the end zone with the field house behind it.

By the way, if you want snacks, get them early. There is absolutely no room to maneuver inside their stadium and it becomes nearly impossible once the crowd gets big in there.

2010 Mississippi State Football Highlight Video

Tags: government, mississippi, mississippi state, mississippi state athletics, mississippi state basketball, mississippi state football, mississippi state university, ms, msu, state

This entry was posted on Friday, March 5th, 2010 at 9:23 pm and is filed under bedding. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.