Mississippi State Bulldogs 2010 College Football Predictions – BCS Odds 2011: The Mississippi State University football program appears to be in good hands with head coach Dan Mullen who will be starting his second season after leading the Bulldogs to a 5-7 season in 2009. Though the team finished below .500, there were signs of improvement from the previous regime of former coach Sylvester Croom.
It would be a safe guess to say the Bulldogs, barring any miracles, will be picked to finish at or near the bottom of the SEC West standings again in 2010. While the team might show some improvement in areas, they are far too short in overall talent to compete for the conference title. Even becoming bowl eligible will be a reach for the undermanned Dogs.
Quarterback play was weak last year and isn't expected to be much better this year. Basically its difficult to bring in a quality quarterback to Starkville, Miss. Last season the leading passer had ten more interceptions than touchdown passes. The good news is Dan Mullen, who came over from Florida, is known as a good quarterbacks coach. His current project is developing junior Chris Relf into a quality SEC signal caller. Relf has the right size, 6-4/240 and arm strength to go with it.
Replacing All-SEC running back Anthony Dixon, who has moved on to the San Francisco Forty-Niners via the NFL Draft, will be difficult but Mullen has high hopes and confidence in juco transfer Vick Ballard.
Under Croom, the emphasis was in building a solid SEC defense so the talent level is good on that side of the ball including defensive end Pernell McPhee and a solid stable of linebackers led by K.J. Wright and Chris White.
The good news for any quarterback is an experienced offensive line and that is the biggest plus side to State's offense with four line starters returning.
