Mississippi State Bulldogs
Preview 2009 - Offense
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2009 CFN Mississippi
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2009 Mississippi
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What you need to know:
What do you do for an offense that
finished 115th in the nation in scoring and 113th in yards? You
bring aboard someone who knows how to get an offense moving.
Now, is head coach Dan Mullen going to be able to jump-start the
Bulldog offense despite not having a Tim Tebow or Percy Harvin
to count on? The MSU attack welcomes back seven returning
starters, but first, it needs to get more out of a veteran line
that had a nightmare of a time in pass protection. Tyson Lee is
back as the starting quarterback, but he'll be pushed this
summer by superstar recruit, Tyler Russell, who's expected to be
the main man for the program for four years. The star of the
offense will be Anthony Dixon, the senior back who has gotten in
better shape and will be used as a receiver and under center
along with his rushing duties. The receiving corps needs a ton
of work, but the coaching staff knows this and hammered the
position hard in the recruiting season. Everything won't come
together right away for the spread attack, but there are good
players to build around for 2010.
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Returning
Leaders
Passing: Tyson Lee
153-260, 1,519 yds, 7 TD, 5 INT
Rushing: Anthony Dixon
197 carries, 869 yds, 7 TD
Receiving: Brandon McRae
51 catches, 518 yds, 3 TD
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Star of the offense: Senior RB Anthony Dixon
Player who has to step up and become a star: Redshirt
freshman WR O'Neal Wilder
Unsung star on the rise: Redshirt freshman RB Robert
Elliott
Best pro prospect: Senior OG Anthony Strauder
Top three all-star candidates: 1) Dixon, 2) Strauder, 3)
Elliott
Strength of the offense: Running back, the right side of
the line
Weakness of the offense: Big plays, wide receiver,
quarterback
Quarterbacks
Projected Starter:
Senior Tyson Lee
should be a good fit for the new offense, and he'll get
a little bit of a shot to show he can handle the work. While
he's only 5-10 and 200 pounds, the star JUCO transfer of a few
years ago is a decent passer completing 59% of his throws for
1,519 yards and seven touchdowns with five interceptions last
season, and he was mobile netting 37 yards and a touchdown, but
running well at times when he wasn't getting sacked. While he
got better as the year went on, he didn't show enough to cement
him in the starting spot if a certain recruit turns out to be as
good as advertised.
Projected Top Reserves: Tyler Russell
hasn't saved the Mississippi State football program
yet, but desperate fans are hoping he will in a big hurry. The
6-4, 200-pound star recruit isn't quite the right fit for Dan
Mullen's offense would like to do, but he's a player. A top
pro-style passing prospect, he has a live arm, smarts, and an
ability to lead the way to wins. For his size, he's a decent
runner. He threw 40 touchdown passes and just five interceptions
as he took Meridian High to the Mississippi state championship
last year.
Sophomore Chris Relf will be the forgotten man
in the quarterback race. He doesn't have much in the way of
experience, completing just 2-of-9 passes for 13 yards in his
limited action, but he's a big, decent option with a live arm
and the potential to grow into a good passer if given the shot.
He's 6-3 and 235 pounds with the ability to push the ball down
the field, but he'll be quickly passed by when Russell gets off
the bus.
Watch Out For ... Lee to not just step aside and
hand over the starting gig to Russell. Lee has enough experience
to be given a shot early on, and with his mobility, he could
become a nice fit for what the coaches want to do.
Strength: Russell. It's impossible to understate just
how great the weight of the program is going to be on his
shoulders. He's supposed to be the savior, and he might really
be that good. The talent is there to become the best passer the
program has had in decades.
Weakness: Proven backups. As good as Russell is,
it'll be a problem if the veteran team has to rely on the true
freshman from game one. The receivers aren't in place to make
Russell better, when it should be the other way around.
Outlook: Wesley Carroll, the starter at the
beginning of last year, moved on to FIU, and now it'll be Lee
and the hope for Russell to be all that and a slice of pie early
on. The inconsistent passing of last year should continue, but
there will be more running from the quarterbacks this year. The
coaching staff should make this position better and more
consistent, even if there isn't much help from the receivers.
Rating: 6
Running Backs
Projected Starters:
Until the passing game comes around, if it comes around, the
offense will be all about Anthony Dixon. The
senior got way too heavy, tipping in at around 255 pounds, but
he got in better shape and appears ready to be a special back as
the focal point of the attack. He's not a trim, for him, 6-1 and
235 pounds with 4.5 speed and the flash to take off on big runs
and be used as a receiver. He ran for 1,066 yards and 14
touchdowns in 2007 but was held in check last year rushing for
869 yards and seven scores with three 100-yard games. However he
was stuffed by the better defenses, rushing for just 26 yards
against Alabama and five yards by Auburn. Already the school's
all-time leading rusher, with 2,788 yards and 30 scores, he'll
be a lock for 1,000 yards if he can stay healthy.
Projected Top Reserves: Senior Christian
Ducre is a nice No. 2 back with enough experience to
get more work behind Dixon. The former Tulane transfer is a 6-0,
220-pound thumper with excellent quickness, but he has to get
over a shoulder injury. He got a most of his work over the first
half of the season, but he was an afterthought over the back
half with just 11 carries in the final six games. Versatile
enough to be a third down back if needed, he caught 13 passes
for 112 yards and a touchdown to go along with 222 rushing yards
and two scores.
5-9, 205-pound senior Arnil
Stallworth was an ultra-productive high school back and
has a good combination of power and quickness, but he has a bad
knee that has kept him out this offseason. He ran for 50 yards
and a touchdown in his limited action last season, but he'll be
the third man in the mix once he comes back healthy.
Watch Out For
... the coaching staff to lean heavily on the ground game, even
more than last year's staff did. Once Ducre and Stallworth are
ready, there will be more of a rotation to keep Dixon fresh.
Strength: Dixon. Great before this offseason, he might
be a new runner with a renewed commitment to fitness and more
quickness than he showed last season. It's not crazy to think he
could be the SEC's best back. Not only will he be the team's top
back, he'll also line up at times at quarterback and can line up
wide at receiver.
Weakness: Backup health. While Stallworth is
supposed to be back from a knee injury and Ducre will be find
when his shoulder gets a little time to heal, it's not a good
sign that they're already hurt. It doesn't help and
Robert Elliott is out with a torn up knee. There has to
be a good rotation early on for the overall offensive plan to
work.
Outlook: While there's lots of work to be done
elsewhere to get ready for the new offense, the running backs
are ready. Dixon is a major star who should be in for a huge
season, and once Ducre and Stallworth get a little time, they'll
do more this year. This should be the strength of the offense by
far.
Rating: 7.5
Receivers
Projected Starters:
There are problems in the
receiving corps with all the new faces needing to produce right
away, but the one sure thing, eventually, will be
Brandon McRae, the team's leading returning receiver.
The 6-4, 200-pound senior caught 51 passes, 20 more than the No.
2 target, for 518 yards and three touchdowns, highlighted by a
ten-catch, 102-yard day in the loss to Georgia Tech. The former
transfer from Morehead State will be the starter on the X once
he gets back healthy from a broken leg.
Taking over a
starting role will be redshirt freshman O'Neal Wilder,
an interesting X factor with 6-5, 190-pound size and some of the
best wheels in the receiving corps. He was expected to see time
early on as a dangerous deep threat, but the former track star
was extremely raw and wasn't ready yet. Now he'll bring his next
level speed and potential to the Z position where he was
terrific at times in spring ball.
In a rotation at the H,
and likely the starter come fall, is Delmon Robinson,
a 5-9, 180-pound sophomore who caught 12 passes for 125 yards.
He struggled with a hamstring injury this offseason and wasn't
able to show off what he could do, but he's very smart, very
fast, with 4.4 speed, and a potential gamebreaker with enough
speed and quickness to be used as a returner.
The MSU
version of a tight end will be Kendrick Cook,
who'll take over for starter Nelson Hurst, who left the program
after catching just two passes. Cook, a 6-4, 250-pound sophomore
has nice speed and good hands. While he didn't do anything last
season, he has tremendous upside and could quickly become a key
go-to target with the potential to create mismatches.
Projected Top Reserves: While he might not
be the starter at the X, with McRae already in the spot, JUCO
transfer Leon Berry was one of the stars of
spring ball. The 6-0, 190-pound junior was a key recruit for
Mullen, and he didn't disappoint after catching 59 passes for
1,003 yards and nine scores, averaging 17 yards per catch, and
he has No. 1 target potential.
Working on the H will be
5-11, 185-pound redshirt freshman Terrance Davis,
an ultra-athletic prospect who will be fine once he learns how
to catch. He was rocky early on this offseason in all areas, but
the light started to go on and he became a crisper route runner
and he wasn't fighting the ball as much. A quarterback prospect
coming out of high school, he's starting to figure out what he's
doing.
Junior Brandon Henderson will be
the main backup at the Y behind Cook, but the 6-2, 245-pounder
is built more like a fullback and is a good blocker. He caught
six passes for 70 yards and a score, doing all his work in the
middle of the season, but he has had problems with an ankle
injury and was out for a time this offseason.
Watch Out For ... the
recruits. Mullen knew he needed an upgrade at receiver in a big
way, and he made sure he brought in prospects with seven
possible targets to work with. Berry is the ready-made one of
the bunch, but true freshman Chad Bumphis is a
player who might see the field sooner than later.
Strength: A passing offense. While it wasn't
exactly the Arizona Cardinal receiving corps out there, it's not
like there was a passing game that could show off what the
receivers could do. There's speed and there's upside with
players like Robinson, Wilder, and McRae all interesting players
to keep an eye on now that the ball will be flying around a bit
more.
Weakness: Health. The new offense desperately
needed everyone in place to get as many good reps as possible,
but it didn't happen with McRae and Robinson out and with so
many new faces in the mix. The passing game will be a
practice-by-practice process.
Outlook: A major disaster last year, the receiving
corps will at least get its shot to make more big plays this
season. McRae is a keeper and Berry could be too good to not be
the star of the show after a few games, but this year will be
all about developing the young prospects. There's a chance the
projected No. 2 offense, with QB Tyler Russell and all the true
freshman receivers, will be better than the starters by a long
shot once the season gets going.
Rating: 5.5
Offensive Line
Projected Starters:
The star of the front five
will once again be Derek Sherrod, a 6-7, 310-pound
junior moved over to left tackle after serving as a key backup in
several spots as a freshman. He got bigger and stronger over the last
year, and he started to find his stride late last year and finished with
ten starts after missing the first two games hurt. He has the size and
he has the experience, but he has to be far more consistent in pass
protection.
Next to Sherrod at left guard will be
Quentin Saulsberry after spending last year starting every game
at right tackle. A star high school defensive tackle, the 6-3, 300-pound
sophomore was thrown to the wolves last year and struggled. Really
struggled. He's a big, tough blocker who couldn't do much against the
better pass rushers, and now he's working at both guard spots and should
be far more comfortable on the inside.
6-2, 300-pound junior
J.C. Brignone started 11 games at center and wasn't
bad. He was a key backup two yards ago, but he had problems with a
shoulder injury, and he was able to grow into the role in the middle
last year. While he might be a better guard in the new offense than a
center, he'll be the starter at his regular spot.
The new
starter on the line will be 6-4, 310-pound redshirt freshman
Tobias Smith, who'll take over for Craig Jenkins. A nice
recruit last year, he's one of the team's strongest players and best
athletes for his size. He has all the measurables, he'd light up the NFL
Combine right now, but he needs to grow into a steady blocker to catch
up with his strength and quickness.
Sophomore Addison
Lawrence will step in at right tackle with Saulsberry moving to
guard. Originally considered a tight end, he hit the weights hard over
the last two years to get up to 295 pounds on his 6-5 frame. Very
athletic and very smart, he should be a perfect fit for the new offense
with a little bit of time to work.
Projected Top Reserves:
Junior Mark Melichar was the
starter at left tackle last season for two games before suffering a knee
injury and missing the rest of the year. At 6-4 and 300 pounds, he's a
big blocker who's back in the mix and good enough to start on the
outside if needed, but will push for time at right guard behind Tobias
Smith. He's athletic, and now he has the bulk on a frame equipped to
handle it.
6-5, 315-pound senior Craig Jenkins
has seen plenty of action over the last several years at guard, and got
the call six times last season at right guard. One of the team's most
versatile blockers, and among the most experienced, he'll start out
behind Saulsberry at left guard but could see time anywhere needed in
the middle.
Watch Out For
... a lot of moving around. This is a different offense with new
responsibilities in the Mullen spread attack. The coaching staff will
play around with the combination up until the opener to get the five
best blockers on the field no matter what's needed to make it happen.
Strength:
Experience. Three starters are back, not
including spot starters like Jenkins. With a new offense in place, this
group should be able to make a quick transition.
Weakness:
Production. The line was a disaster last year
even though it was supposed to grow into a strength. MSU was 114th in
the nation in sacks allowed and paved the way for the nation's 105th
ranked ground game that averaged just 100.58 yards per try.
Outlook:
The line was supposed to be a strength last
season with a veteran group working around some promising new stars. It
didn't work. O line coach John Hevesy, who's joining Mullen from
Florida, has work to do, but he has an experienced line that should be
better only because it won't be asked to do as much. As strange as that
sounds, the big line doesn't have to dominate; it has to hold its own
and let the skill players do the rest. This group won't pound away for
long drives, but it should be better.
Rating: 6
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