Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen has a big job ahead of him.

He now resides in the same SEC neighborhood as Houston Nutt, Nick Saban, Les Miles, Bobby Petrino and Gene “4-19 record at Iowa State” Chizik. It’s his first season as a college head coach.

It sure won’t be easy, as the Bulldogs have proven a tough gig for every coach who has taken over the Maroon and White.

Rocky Felker was the youngest head coach in the country when he was picked to lead his alma mater in 1986, but left a few years later with a 21-34 record.

Former Texas A&M coach Jackie Sherrill made MSU a perennial contender in the West, but he had a bull castrated in front of his team and ran afoul of the NCAA. His last appearance on campus during spring practice this year drew the team a minor NCAA violation.

Figures, doesn’t it?

Sylvester Croom made history as the SEC’s first black coach, but in the end, his inability to build an offense which wasn’t predicated on run-first, run-second, run-third and punt proved his undoing. His final two years showed the difficulty of the task in Starkville. His team won eight games in 2008 and the Liberty Bowl when everything seemingly rolled the Bulldogs’ way.

The next season, left tackle Michael Brown and backup defensive tackle Quinton Wesley were kicked off the team after popping off a few rounds on campus and the season misfired from that point in a total reversal of fortune. After a disappointing opening loss to Louisiana Tech, the Bulldogs reached their high-water mark in perhaps the worst football game in SEC history, a 3-2 loss to Auburn that largely sealed their fate with a 1-2 start. Despite gutty wins over Vanderbilt and Arkansas, the Bulldogs were blasted against the likes of Georgia Tech, Tennessee, Alabama and Ole Miss. MSU was outscored 149-17 in those four games.

Croom finished his five-year run with a 21-38 record, one bowl win and one winning season.

His successor has the pedigree, but not the results. At least not yet.

Mullen brings a certain youthful elan to the Bulldogs, having coached one of the best college football players ever, Tim Tebow, and he has been Florida coach Urban Meyer’s right-hand man.

He’s charismatic, a skillful recruiter as evidenced by the Bulldogs’ excellent haul for a first-year coach, and has the force of personality to effect change in Starkville. Just ask Bulldog players about his demeanor on the practice field. They know who is in charge.

But can that translate to wins? Probably not out of the gate. Even so, the schedule could set up for the Bulldogs to make a bowl run. Despite having LSU, Georgia Tech, Alabama, Florida and Ole Miss all visiting Scott Field, the rest of the schedule is filled with winnable games.

The big if is on offense, where the Bulldogs will need a season or two to adjust to Mullen’s spread. Tyson Lee enters the season as the incumbent starter at quarterback, but the same was said about Wesley Carroll, who transferred to Florida International. At least Mullen’s offense will make it far easier to bring the kind of skill players to Starkville than his predecessor, whose offense was more conservative than Rush Limbaugh.

If he could pull it off, Mullen would be the second first-year MSU coach since Sherrill to lead the Bulldogs to a bowl game.

And that would get the cowbells ringing.

Steve Wilson is sports editor of The Vicksburg Post. Write to him at Box 821668, Vicksburg, MS 39182, or e-mail swilson@vicksburgpost.com..