Mississippi State football: Non-conference opponents the Bulldogs should schedule

With Mike Leach bringing his Air Raid offense to the Mississippi State football program, it’s time for the Bulldogs to get some new blood into the schedule.

There are some games Mississippi State football fans look forward to every season. Rivalries in the SEC are unmatched, and the Egg Bowl — along with a number of other big conference games — is the highlight of the season.

In its football history, Mississippi State has played a wide range of teams and has sampled at least one team from every FBS conference.

But there are a few Power-5 teams whom the Bulldogs have never faced, and a few schools who have only come up against Mississippi State once, many years ago. It would be great to see some of these schools begin to appear on the football schedule for future seasons.

Mississippi State football should schedule some of these

There are more than a handful of schools that have never faced the Bulldogs. Scheduling home-and-home series with these great schools would not only add some interesting games to the schedule but  — as was seen with Georgia and Notre Dame in their recent series — it could also bring some great national attention.

It’s hard to believe Mississippi State has never faced these schools:

Virginia Tech, Pitt, Oklahoma, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin, Stanford, Colorado, USC, Notre Dame.

Of those schools, it would be great to see Ohio State on the schedule since they love to talk so much trash about the SEC. Then how about Oklahoma, the team that always seems to slide into the College Football Playoff and get embarrassed. Virginia Tech would be a great opponent, as Lane Stadium is one of the best venues in the country.

But there’s one other team that has never appeared on a Mississippi State football schedule, and that’s Mike Leach’s old employer, Washington State.

It almost seems like a no-brainer that the Bulldogs and Cougars would face each other now, and apparently some of Leach’s former players would love a shot at trying to beat him, according to the Clarion-Leger. Hopefully, that can get scheduled before too long.

How about some teams who the Bulldogs have only faced once, and haven’t met in 35 years or more.

Mississippi State football: It’s been too long

Only meeting: 9/17/83
Venue: Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium
City: Jackson, MS
Result: W 38-10

Navy is one of the great traditional option running teams in the FBS, and matching up the Mike Leach high-powered passing attack against the run-run-run of Navy’s offense would be a very entertaining game to watch.

Only meeting: 12/31/81 (Hall of Fame Classic)
Venue: Legion Field
City: Birmingham, Al
Result: W 10-0

It would be great to face Kansas if for no other reason than to be able to hand a loss or two to former LSU head coach, Les Miles. That, and beating any team from the Big 12 is always a favorite pastime of SEC schools.

Only meeting: 9/10/77
Venue: Husky Stadium
City: Seattle, Wa
Result: W 27-18

Washington has become one of the powerhouses in the Pac-12, and the only meeting between the Huskies and Bulldogs in 1977 (a win by Mississippi State) was forfeited along with the rest of the wins from that season due to playing an ineligible player.

Only meeting: 10/24/36
Venue: Amon G. Carter Stadium
City: Ft. Worth, Tx.
Result: T 0-0

When Mississippi State played TCU in 1936, the Bulldogs were known as the “Maroons” and played to a 0-0 stalemate with the Horned Frogs. TCU runs a similar passing attack to Mike Leach’s system, so fans would probably be treated to the polar opposite of that 1936 score.

Only meeting: 10/24/36
Venue: Michie Stadium
City: West Point, N.Y.
Result: W 13-7

There really should be a rule that if you haven’t played Army, you can’t really be considered a true college football program. Since Mississippi State hasn’t faced the Black Knights since 1935, a rematch is long overdue. Much respect to the cadets, as it would be an honor to host the team from West Point.

Let us know which of these teams you’d love to see on a future Mississippi State football schedule, or which stadiums you’d like to invade as a group of visiting fans.