Mississippi State is looking to build off of some late-season momentum in 2020. In Year 2 under Mike Leach, the Bulldogs will need to be much more consistent offensively and try to minimize any sort of defensive drop from one of the better units in the SEC in 2020.

Let’s take a look at 10 questions surrounding Mississippi State heading into fall camp.

1. Who wins the quarterback job?

This is obviously the most important and overarching question surrounding Leach’s offense. Freshman Will Rogers took the reins in the back half of 2020 and found his form pretty quickly as the offense began to hit its stride over the final 4 games. The Bulldogs landed a highly-touted quarterback in Sawyer Robertson in their 2021 recruiting class, and brought in Southern Miss transfer Jack Abraham, opening up the competition once again. Rogers will be the favorite heading into camp but is far from a lock to start the season opener.

Who wins this job and how effectively they play will make or break Mississippi State in 2021.

2. Who will emerge at wide receiver?

It’s fun to play receiver in a Mike Leach offense, and the Bulldogs need a volume receiver to emerge out of a fairly inexperienced receiving corps. Austin Williams, Jaden Walley and Rufus Harvey are the most likely candidates. Walley led all receivers in catches last season with 52, and with JaVonta Payton transferring to Tennessee, this trio will be under increased pressure to produce.  Makai Polk and Malik Heath also are worth monitoring as camp progresses.

Williams has a chance to be a bit of an X-factor and Harvey is a talented incoming freshman who will have every opportunity to make an immediate impact.

3. Can the Bulldogs reload on the defensive line?

Kobe Jones and Marquiss Spencer departed and will need to be replaced. The Bulldogs had one of the better defenses in the SEC last season and the pass rush was a big part of that. Aaron Odom and transfer Randy Charlton could end up being the starting defensive ends. How well they fare and the depth the Bulldogs formulate behind them will be crucial to the defense’s success.

4. Will the offensive line adjust to Leach’s scheme?

Mississippi State has to replace both guard slots and find a right tackle, along with adjusting to the wide-split technique Leach uses on the offensive line. The Bulldogs do not return a ton of experience but presumably feel pretty good about Charles Cross at left tackle and Cole Smith at center. If the Bulldogs can fill the other three slots and remain relatively healthy, the o-line should be fine.

5. How will the linebacking corps fair without Erroll Thompson?

Thompson moved on to the NFL, leaving an outside linebacker slot open. Nathaniel Watson backed up Thompson last year but will presumably  shift to middle linebacker, leaving Tyrus Wheat to play opposite of Aaron Brule. That’s still a pretty formidable and experienced linebacking corps. How do freshmen John Lewis and Ty Cooper fit into the depth chart? Building depth will be the focus at linebacker for the Bulldogs.

6. How good will the safety play be?

This is likely the biggest hole to fill on defense. Opt-outs and injuries crushed the secondary in 2020 and there isn’t a whole lot of experience returning. The Bulldogs scored a badly-needed transfer in Jalen Green from Texas and will look to Fred Peters and CJ Morgan to solidify this position.

7. How will Jo’quavious Marks be used?

The versatile back has the potential to be a tremendous weapon out of the backfield and in a pass-catching  capacity. Marks led the team in receptions last year with 60 and was pretty productive on the ground, too. How Leach uses him and the number of ways the Bulldogs are able to feed him the football will be interesting to watch unfold.

8. Will the offensive scheme be more unpredictable?

The simplistic nature of Leach’s offense didn’t adjust to the SEC a season ago. Was it because the wrong personnel was in place or is it indicative of a larger and potentially long-term problem? This is an important year for Leach from an offensive production standpoint. The Bulldogs’ offense looked bland and anemic for the first 2/3 of the 2020 season, aside from carving up LSU in the season-opener. Will the scheme be more unpredictable or will the same simplistic approach be more successful with better pieces in place? This will be quickly get answered once conference play arrives.

9. Can MSU build depth at corner?

Emmanuel Forbes was terrific last season and Martin Emerson will likely play opposite of him. But what about beyond that? Esaias Furdge is the only guy that returns multiple starts and the defense will look to Jaylon Reed and Decamerion Richardson to develop into guys that MSU can rely on as depth pieces at corner.

10. Will two quarterbacks play to start the season?

Leach didn’t seem to favor this idea when asked about it at SEC Media Days, but with a truncated time period to determine a starter, one can’t help but wonder if the Bulldogs play multiple quarterbacks to start the season. Mississippi State should beat its season-opening opponent Louisiana Tech no matter who plays quarterback. The issue is NC State coming to Starkville the next week before a road trip to Memphis. Obviously, the staff would love to have this solved before the first game, but if it isn’t, they’ll certainly need to get it figured out after one game as the nonconference slate stiffens.