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Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Southern Miss Golden Eagles: Best Case, Worst Case and a Bold Prediction

With the season opener against Southern Miss closing in, we take a look at the best case and worst case scenarios for Mississippi State and toss in a bold prediction.

John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

With Mississippi State's season opener against Southern Miss just a few days away, many fans have started to predict what will happen in the contest between the Bulldogs and Golden Eagles.  While calling for a major Bulldog victory has been what most Mississippi State fans have done, some have dared to whisper "What if?".  With a full range of possibilities, we hope you will play along predicting the best case and worst case scenarios for the game Saturday while also tossing in a bold prediction.

I'll lead the way.

Best Case Scenario: Mississippi State forces a three-and-out to start the contest, and the Bulldog offense marches down the field with ease to put the Maroon and White ahead 7-0 quickly.  The Southern Miss crowd quickly loses its enthusiasm for the game.

Mississippi State tacks on a field goal right before halftime to give the Bulldogs a 38-0 lead over the Golden Eagles.  Dak takes the field for one more series, and he grabs a clipboard for the rest of the day with the Bulldogs ahead 45-0. Southern Miss adds a late touchdown, but the Bulldogs leave Hattiesburg 52-7 winners.

Worst Case Scenario: The question marks facing Mississippi State in the offseason turn out to be real. The Bulldogs' offensive line struggles to establish a solid running game, and the line allows Prescott to be sacked three times.  Defensively, TCU transfer turned Southern Miss quarterback Tyler Mathews shows that it took a player the caliber of Trevone Boykin to keep him on the bench by torching the Bulldog secondary.

Mississippi State finally gains control of the game in the fourth quarter, picking up a 34-24 victory, but the Bulldogs have several questions headed into a much more scary than before matchup with LSU.  It feels like the Memphis game from 2001 all over again.

Bold Prediction: The Prescott to De'Runnya Wilson connection is going to explode Saturday.  Prescott will throw for five touchdowns and over 300 yards in the contest.  Wilson will have 125 of those yards, and he will catch three of the touchdown passes.