First look at UK's 2018 schedule: Mississippi State

If you breathed a deep sigh of relief when Dan Mullen left Mississippi State for Florida, it might be wise to consider the following two facts: Kentucky still has to face Mullen, only at a place where he can recruit five-star players, and Mullen left new coach Joe Moorhead a roster full of high-level SEC players ready to win plenty of games.

Cats Illustrated's way too early preview of Kentucky's 2018 schedule presses on with a closer look at Mississippi State, the Wildcats' annual opponent from the SEC West.

Opponent Previews: Central Michigan | Florida | Murray State

Mississippi State at Kentucky, September 22nd, 2018 (Lexington, Ky.)

2017 Overview: Going into the season we knew that quarterback Nick Fitzgerald had the potential to be a big-time player. He wasn't Dak Prescott, but as the season played out it became clear that the Bulldogs had a potential down-the-road Heisman darkhorse behind center. Fitzgerald missed the tail end of the Bulldogs' 2017 season, but Mississippi State still defeated a Louisville team that was playing at a high level in the TaxSlayer Bowl without him. That should tell you something.

Mississippi State was always a physical, blue collar team under Dan Mullen, but in the latter years of his regime the Bulldogs became especially punishing and took their play to another level.

The Bulldogs were flat out bad early in the season against Georgia (31-3 loss) and Auburn (49-10 loss). Then again, those losses came on the heels of Mississippi State's drubbing of LSU, and the Bulldogs proved late in the year they could handle talent when they nearly beat Alabama. Besides, Auburn was turning into the nation's best team at that point in the season, and Georgia finished the year as the best team in the country.

Besides those two games, Mississippi State was dominant. Maybe the most interesting thing about Mississippi State's 2017 season was the almost total absence of close games. They only played one game that was decided by less than a touchdown, and that was their 31-27 victory against Louisville. Most of their games turned out to be comfortable wins, with their blowout win against Kentucky falling into that category.

They were just as physical as you'd expect a Dan Mullen team to be, averaging 5.16 yards per carry and shutting down most of the ground games they faced. Fitzgerald was not nearly as efficient passing the ball as the Bulldogs were when they kept it on the ground, but only a handful of teams in college football could have taken away MSU's running game last season. The defense was stout across the board, from a physical front to a secondary that accounted for as many interceptions as opposing quarterbacks did touchdowns.

Offseason Questions and Storylines: Joe Moorhead was a very interesting hire for Mississippi State because he's a Northeast guy without a personal or professional history in the South, much less the Deep South, and his previous head coaching experience came at the FCS level at Fordham. Nonetheless, MSU's administration quickly and confidently zeroed in on him and locked him up while most of the other strong Power Five programs across the country were targeting high profile head coaches.

Moorhead comes with impressive offensive credentials. He built an almost unstoppable offense at Penn State that was a fun to watch as it was productive and helped turn Trace McSorley into one of the frontrunners for the 2018 Heisman Trophy. Can Moorhead turn Fitzgerald into a bona fide Heisman candidate? It's not outside the realm of possibility.

Philosophically Moorhead will bring some of his own wrinkles, but like Mullen he, too, leans on the quarterback running the ball and a balanced offensive attack that leans slightly more towards the run overall, but more pass-happy than Mullen.

While coaching turnover will be the big story of the offseason, roster continuity will also be something you hear a lot about. Mississippi State returns nearly their entire team from 2017 intact for next year. The really big question will be whether Mississippi State is poised to take yet another step up the SEC ladder and challenge for an SEC West championship. Alabama will be the favorite and rightfully so, but Mississippi State has the pieces to beat any team in the country.

Previewing MSU's 2018: Nick Fitzgerald should be one of the nation's best quarterbacks and when you put him with one of the nation's brightest offensive minds, in Moorhead, you have the potential for a potent attack. Unless MSU's strength and conditioning program falls apart completely in the offseason this should be yet another physical Bulldog team, capable of simply running over, around and through most of the teams on their schedule. For the offense to take a step to the next level it will need to become more balanced and that means Fitzgerald will have to progress as a passer.

The silver lining to Fitzgerald's late season injury was the valuable experience gained for backup and rising sophomore Keytaon Thompson, who is also more of a runner than a thrower.

Aeris Williams topped the 1,000 yard mark as a rusher last year (although Kentucky held him in check) and he'll be a good first option as a senior running back.

While the offense is in good hands with Moorhead calling the shots and Fitzgerald executing, the defense should be ferocious with Jeffery Simmons and Montez Sweat (10.5 sacks, 15.5 TFL) returning as one of the nation's best trench duos. Sweat's decision to bypass the NFL is a huge boost for a defense that allowed less than 21 points per game, notched 36 sacks and 86 tackles for loss. Next year's defense should be one of the best in the nation and fast, physical and deep across the board.

If Mississippi State didn't play in the SEC West it's probably safe to say they would be a trendy preseason pick for the College Football Playoff. But when you have to go through Alabama and next year's Auburn team (which returns Jarrett Stidham and a top tier defense), that becomes a little tougher.

That doesn't mean the Bulldogs will be without weaknesses. How they take to a new head coach who is an interesting fit in Starkville will determine a lot, as will Fitzgerald's development as a passer.