MSU should plan Bulldog Bash and SBW around easier opponents

MSU is coming off a sweep to Texas A&M….on SBW. Big events on campus like this and Bulldog Bash are all too often tarnished by loses in the games they are centered around. 

Bulldog Bash 2015: loss to LSU

SBW 2015: swept by Florida

Bulldog Bash 2014: beat A&M

SBW 2014: lost series to Ole Miss

Bulldog Bash 2013: loss to LSU

SBW 2013: won series vs. Auburn

Bulldog Bash 2012: loss to Texas A&M

SBW 2012: swept Tennessee

Bulldog Bash 2011: loss to Alabama

SBW 2011: lost series to Florida.

Results: MSU has lost its last seven baseball games on Super Bulldog Weekend, and four out of the last five football games the day after Bulldog Bash.

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These two events are the biggest weekends of their respective semesters. There’s always a lot of excitement around Bulldog Bash and SBW, especially for students. Unfortunately, the gridiron Dawgs and Diamond Dawgs seem to come away with losses more times than not.

This has been going on for quite some time. I was in school at MSU over decade ago when Bulldog Bash was just beginning its rise to popularity…and we lost every game played on that weekend. Granted, we were horrible in football back then. But in baseball we were pretty good – still, I don’t remember ever winning the Saturday of SBW – the most attended game of the year.

I can understand why the university wants to coordinate these huge events with huge games. It just creates that much more excitement. But maybe it puts too much pressure on the players and they don’t preform as well. And for sure, while there’s excitement before the game there’s disappointment after.

Throughout the entire list above, the only time MSU won was they either had a great team (2014 football, 2013 baseball) or were playing a mediocre opponent (2012 and 2013 baseball).

I’ll be optimistic all I can be about MSU’s chances to have a great team, but chances are it isn’t going to happen a lot more than it is. With these big weekends, I’d like to walk away from the fun knowing we won the game(s). This past weekend was fun, but getting swept by A&M left a bitter taste in my mouth.

Why not create more big weekends?

Here’s an excerpt from the official Bulldog Bash website:

"Bulldog Bash™ was created in 1999 to help kick off SEC football play for the Mississippi State University Bulldog’s and is designed to bring the University Student Body, Alumni and the community together in one night of fun."

Are we kicking off SEC football in October (2013, 2014) or November (2011, 2012)? No. So that statement isn’t relevant anymore.

2015’s Bulldog Bash did kickoff SEC play in early September, but it was for a big game against LSU – one we lost. Coulda, shoulda won it, but we didn’t.

Why not have Bulldog Bash the next weekend, when State played Northwestern State? Or the weekend of the Troy game?

There are four big football weekends every fall (SEC games). Why not make it five? I’m sure things are still the same at State as when I was in school – if there’s not a SEC football game on campus then half the students go home. I was never a fan of that….since I had just spent 18 years at home and was now free to roam, but you get the point.

Bulldog Bash doesn’t have to be elevated by a SEC game to become the biggest weekend of the year. It can just elevate another non-conference game to put it on par with the other SEC weekends.

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If you don’t like that, here’s a compromise: in 2017, MSU will play their first required ‘power five’ non-conference game at home (BYU). Put Bulldog Bash on that weekend. Then there will be games with N.C. State, Arizona and Kansas State in later years.

I’d prefer just to have Bulldog Bash the same weekend as a weaker team, though. That would make five big weekends, the power five team would make six big weekends and Homecoming could make all seven special in some way.

As for SBW, I’m sure Scott Stricklin’s hands are tied a little bit trying to coordinate spring football, softball, baseball, tennis, etc. all into one weekend but let’s ask for a lesser opponent than a top 5 team that ends up in Omaha two months later.