Early 2016 schedule outlook: Mississippi State

Mississippi State exceeded expectations with a 9-4 record in 2015. The roster might be better overall, but the road back to nine wins looks difficult.

The Bulldogs will face LSU, Alabama and Ole Miss on the road. At home against those opponents in 2015, Mississippi State lost to all three. The Bulldogs will also visit their annual crossover rival Kentucky.

The non-conference schedule also presents a tough road test against BYU. The Cougars finished 9-4 in 2015.

Without Dak Prescott, the Bulldogs will have to count on an inexperienced quarterback. Losing two offensive linemen, standout WR De’Runnya Wilson and defensive stars Beniquez Brown and Chris Jones are also significant challenges.

Mississippi State has a favorable crossover game against South Carolina, which had only one SEC victory in 2015.

Mississippi State also has South Alabama, UMass and Samford on its non-conference schedule, which should be easy victories. The Bulldogs’ home games against Auburn, Texas A&M and Arkansas will make or break their season.

Let’s take a closer look at the schedule.

SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN

Home games (6): South Alabama (Sept. 3), South Carolina (Sept. 10), Auburn (Oct. 8), Samford (Oct. 29), Texas A&M (Nov. 5), Arkansas (Nov. 19)

Road games (6): LSU (Sept. 17), UMass (Sept. 24), BYU (Oct. 15), Kentucky (Oct. 22), Alabama (Nov. 12), Ole Miss (Nov. 26)

Longest home stretch: 2 games (South Alabama and South Carolina) (Samford and Texas A&M)

Longest road stretch: 2 games (LSU and UMass) (BYU and Kentucky)

OPPONENT BREAKDOWN

2015 ranked teams (final regular season): No. 1 Alabama, No. 10 Ole Miss, No. 16 LSU

2016 ranked teams (early projections): No. 3 LSU, No. 7 Alabama, No. 20 Arkansas, No. 23 Ole Miss

Potential trap games: South Carolina (a week before visiting top ranked LSU); Texas A&M (the first game of the final four regular season games which includes Alabama, Arkansas and Ole Miss).

Toughest SEC games: at LSU, at Alabama, at Ole Miss

FULL SCHEDULE