The Mississippi State Bulldogs bid farewell to 18 seniors at the end of last season, and upon factoring in the juniors who opted to declare for the NFL Draft a year early there are 20 players and 12 starters gone from last year’s 10-win team.

But that’s the cyclical nature of college football. Mississippi State may have lost a ton of talent from the 2014 squad, but it’s far from the only program to lose a large senior class. The key for the Bulldogs to remain relevant in the SEC West is to have replacements ready to make an impact in the starting lineup, and if there’s any coach in America prepared for those circumstances it’s Dan Mullen.

Mullen’s Bulldog teams are known for rotating second-string players onto the field for meaningful snaps in non-conference games, all in an effort to build depth and prepare for situations like the one MSU faces this spring, with 12 former starters gone and a highly competitive division looming this fall.

Let’s take a look at some of the new faces we’ll see in Mississippi State’s lineup this season, who they’ll be replacing and what we can expect from the Bulldogs’ future football stars:

RBs Ashton Shumpert and Brandon Holloway

Replacing: Josh Robinson
Expectations: The expectations for Shumpert and Holloway are high, considering the success of Mississippi State’s rushing attack during Mullen’s six years in Starkville. Holloway is a 160-pound slasher who can get to the edge and make plays in space, while Shumpert is the 220-pound bruiser who can earn the hard yards between the tackles. Mississippi State is replacing most of its offensive line this offseason, but if the line can find its rhythm these two tailbacks will easily combine for more than 1,500 yards on the year.

WRs Fred Ross and Donald Gray

Replacing: Jameon Lewis
Expectations: Lewis was more or less a gadget player at MSU, and that role will be difficult to replace. He could take an underneath crossing route or a quick slant and turn it into an 80-yard house call. He could handle carries out of the backfield and on reverses, could throw passes nearly as well as Dak Prescott and could even return kickoffs and punts.

Even if Mississippi State can’t get all of that out of Ross or Gray, it can turn either into a reliable No. 2 receiving option to play opposite De’Runnya Wilson. Ross was second on the Bulldogs in receptions last season and is the team’s only returning player besides Wilson with at least 18 catches last season. He’s long and fast, and he can make plays across the middle and down the field as an outside target.

Gray is a four-star junior college transfer from the past recruiting cycle who should get an opportunity to play right away. He was the No. 2 JUCO wideout in the nation last season, catching 55 balls for 989 yards and 10 touchdowns in 11 games. At 5-foot-9, he’s built more like Lewis, and could make plays in the slot and on underneath routes thanks to his illusive size and quickness.

LBs Richie Brown Leo Lewis

Replacing: Benardrick McKinney
Expectations: McKinney is considered the top inside linebacker prospect in the current NFL Draft class, and his dominant 6-foot-5, 250-pound build will be difficult to replace at the heart of the Mississippi State defense. Beniquez Brown, the most experienced and arguably most intelligent linebacker on Mississippi State’s roster, will maintain his staring role from last season. The only question is, who will play alongside him in McKinney’s place?

Lewis seems like a prime candidate to fill in at middle linebacker. After all, he was regarded as the No. 1 inside linebacker prospect in last year’s recruiting class, and if given a chance to play as a true freshman he has the size to handle himself at 6-foot-3 and 225 pounds (he’ll bulk up over the course of his collegiate career). Lewis is a smart player and a sure tackler who can cover ground from sideline to sideline, and now is as good a time as any to work him onto the first-team defense considering MSU’s entire unit is transitioning to Manny Diaz’s new system.

Richie Brown (no relation to Beniquez) emerged in the second half of last season, and he could see plenty of playing time at inside linebacker as well, especially if Lewis is slow in his transition to the college level (which would be understandable). His 50 tackles ranked among the top 5 totals on Mississippi State’s roster a year ago, and that was before Brown was even a full-time starter. He is a fine run-stopper but is even better in coverage across the middle, logging three interceptions and three pass breakups last fall. His three picks were tied for the team lead and ranked second among non-defensive backs through the entire SEC.

CB Will Redmond

Replacing: Jamerson Love
Expectations: Redmond isn’t exactly a new star MSU fans are “meeting” for the first time. He’s been Mississippi State’s nickel corner for more than a year now, and he’s filled the role well despite never earning a starting job in that time. His three picks last year tied Brown for the team lead, and he came up with those picks at crucial times. His late interceptions against LSU and Arkansas clinched a pair of SEC West wins in the final minutes of both games, and his 51 tackles topped the totals posted by most members of the MSU front seven.

Redmond is dynamic in coverage, be it man to man or zone, and he is a fine run-stopper who can seal off the outside and keep plays in front of him. MSU’s secondary still appears to be flawed entering 2015, but Redmond is far and away the best newcomer of the bunch.

Safeties Jamal Peters, Kivon Coman and Deontay Evans

Replacing: Justin Cox and Jay Hughes
Expectations: Diaz’s toughest task in the first spring of his second stint as Mississippi State’s defensive coordinator is finding a new pair of safeties to insert into the Bulldogs’ lineup after Cox and Hughes both graduated following last season. Coman and Evans provide experience at the position, but Peters may be the most talented member of the bunch.

A true freshman, Peters was regarded as one of the five best safeties in the class by most recruiting services. He’s just shy of 6-foot-2 and already weighs more than 200 pounds with room to continue to bulk up during his years in Starkville, and Peters uses his size and strength to play a downhill brand of football from the back of the defense. He’s a hard hitter who can fly from sideline to sideline, and although he’s still a work in progress as far as coverage skills are concerned, he’s the kind of aggressive athlete who can create plays just by being on the field.

Coman and Evans have had two years to get their feet wet in the SEC. The two combined to make 72 tackles last season in addition to nine passes broken up, but both provide different skill sets in the secondary. Coman is the lengthy 6-foot-3 safety with nice closing speed and ball skills who can excel in pass coverage down the field. Evans, meanwhile, is a bit shorter and a bit heavier, allowing him to play a similar style to Peters.

However Mullen and Diaz opt to rotate these three players, they’ll all be expected to have productive seasons this fall as the new full-time starters at safety.