What Are Reasonable Expectations For Mississippi State Football In 2018?
By Ethan Lee
How Many Games Should Mississippi State Football Fans Expect The Bulldogs To Win This Year?
Depending on who you ask this question, you’ll get a wide array of answers and results. Folks like Brandon Marcello believe that Mississippi State fans should “enjoy it” if MSU wins 7 or 8 games this season.
Meanwhile, Connor O’Gara of Saturday Down South believes that the Bulldogs can make a run at the Southeastern Conference and win 10-11 games. O’Gara expects that the Mississippi State football team can easily accomplish those wins and that fans of the Bulldogs should only be scared of when MSU goes to Tuscaloosa to play the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Based off his high level of praise and his statements, I’d wager that O’Gara believes MSU fans should be disappointed by Marcello’s much lower win total expectations.
In all actuality, what should MSU fans expect in terms of wins heading into this season? Well, Mississippi State has a clear path to 9 or more wins. I don’t think it’ll be easily obtainable, but it is certainly achievable.
On top of that, MSU is favored to win 10 of its games in ESPN’s FPI predictions. However, based off how the Football Power Index works, the Bulldogs are projected to win 8.4 games in the 2018 season.
And what does that mean for expectations?
It’s realistic to expect the Mississippi State football team to win anywhere from 8-10 games this season. Given what the Bulldogs have returning on their roster, I’d lean more toward the 9-10 range.