Ranking of the last seven opponents

Mississippi State ends its first of two bye weeks with a 1-4 mark in Jeff Lebby’s debut season as head coach. While Vanderbilt gave hope to other SEC underdogs last weekend, it’s very likely the Bulldogs won’t be bowl eligible for the second straight year.

The next seven games in Starkville are about building a foundation for the future, possibly around true freshman QB Michael Van Buren Jr., and gathering some momentum for the offseason.

To see where the most likely confidence-boosting wins remain on the schedule, we ranked MSU’s remaining opponents from toughest to weakest.

The Bulldogs haven’t won Between the Hedges since 1956 and aren’t expected to break that streak on Saturday. This is an excellent test for MVB, although the staff must ensure that Dawg D does not destroy his body or his confidence.

Despite last week’s loss at Arkansas, this is still a very good Volunteer squad. While hyped QB Nico Iamaleava hasn’t quite hit his stride yet, the defense is one of only five FBS units allowing fewer than 10 points per game.

It’s the eggshell, so you never know. The last five matches have been decided by an average of six points and the last three have been won by the away team. Lebby was Lane Kiffin’s offensive coordinator in 2020 and 2021, so this will be a very interesting first meeting as a head coach.

Mike Elko has the Aggies as one of the hottest teams in the SEC. A&M beat Missouri for just its fifth straight win and climbed to No. 15 in the AP poll with stellar defense.

Hogs are having a very strong season for Sam Pittman, who started the year on the hot seat. In their last three games, they’ve beaten Auburn, lost by four to Texas A&M and shocked undefeated Tennessee.

Could this be a place for MSU to get Lebby a signature surprise? Mizzou appears vulnerable after close calls with Boston College and Vanderbilt resulted in a lopsided loss last Saturday at Kyle Field.

This should be the place where the Bulldogs can pad their stats and get the young backups some impressive reps. The Minutemen are 1-5, with their only win coming by just four points over Central Connecticut State.

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