The Mississippi State Bulldogs will be entering an exciting new era this fall under coach Mike Leach, who takes over for Joe Moorhead.

After coming over from Washington State, Leach will have high expectations on his program in 2020 and beyond.

During an appearance on WJOX this week, SEC Network host Paul Finebaum predicted that 2020 will be Leach’s best year in Starkville (via 247Sports):

“I think it’s going to be this year,” Finebaum said of Mississippi State’s best season under Leach. “Well, I’m not saying it’s going (downhill after that). … I think, because of the quarterback situation — he’s got the kid from Stanford, (graduate transfer quarterback KJ Costello), he looks really good — I just don’t know about Mike Leach’s recruiting down the road.”

Finebaum brought up Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss as a reason why Mississippi State’s recruiting could suffer under Leach:

“And I think the reason I bring that up is because Kiffin will ultimately start taking over that state,” Finebaum said. “He didn’t do it in the first go-around because I think it was really difficult to get established, but Lane is a very smart recruiter. Leach recruits a different type of athlete.”

Can Leach prove Finebaum wrong and build a sustainable program at Mississippi State?