Can Mullen and Relf do it again?

Yes….they can. Now that Spring practice is over – let’s take a look at the Mississippi State football team heading into the Summer months. How will the Dawgs look on offense?

Quarterback: Chris Relf isn’t flashy, but he gets the job done. Relf was outstanding last year for one simple reason: He didn’t turn the ball over many times, and during one 6-game stretch Relf didn’t have a turnover. Mullen and Les Keonning, the offensive coordinator at MSU, have done a great job developing Relf into a pretty good Division-1 quarterback. Mississippi State has some good depth for the first time in the history of the program with Tyler Russell and Dylan Favre fighting for the backup position.

 Running back: Good, but thin. Vick Ballard proved he can carry load in 2010 with several big games. Ballard is not scared to run in between the tackles, either. As the season progressed, Ladarius Perkins emerged as a threat running and catching the ball out of the backfield. Perkins will see a lot more action. Robert Elliott has never been the back MState fans thought he would be, but he’s a solid backup. Nick Griffin tearing his ACL was a pretty big blow. I was told Griffin had more upside than Ballard and Perkins.

Offensive line: Shaky, but potential. Three starters coming back is always a good thing in SEC football. Quentin Saulsberry will lead the way, and he’s developed into an outstanding SEC offensive lineman. The problem and it’s a big one – the left tackle position. Can James Carmon develop into a solid SEC left tackle over the summer? I don’t envy John Hevesy in 2011.

Wide receiversTE: First time you could say this in years. This group should be pretty darn good. Chad Bumphis, Arceto Clark and Michael Carr should lead the way for this young, but pretty talent group. Bumphis and Clark need to be go-to guys for Relf. If Marcus Greene comes back healthy, he’ll make Bumphis and the crew even better.

Defense & special teams coming later in the week.

Bo Bounds is the host of the Out of Bounds show on ESPN 105.9 The Zone and http://thezone1059.com: Where SEC football meets the Y’all Lifestyle. Check out the new Y’all Lifestyle product line we rolled out in April: http://www.yalllifestyle.com/t-shirts/