Mississippi State fired first-year coach Zach Arnett on Monday on the heels of the Bulldogs’ 51-10 loss to Texas A&M on Saturday. Arnett, who was in his first full season since taking over for Mike Leach after the legendary offensive mastermind’s untimely death, was 4-6 this season with his lone SEC win coming against Arkansas on Oct. 21. Arnett led the Bulldogs to a 19-10 win over Illinois in the ReliaQuest Bowl as interim coach last season, but the wheels fell off after he was elevated to the full-time role in 2023.
The SEC landscape is changing next season with Texas and Oklahoma joining the league and divisions being eliminated. Plus, a new media rights deal will pay teams significantly more than the massive annual income they were already receiving in the current deal. As such, the vacant job in Starkville, Mississippi, will be an attractive challenge for any potential hire.
So who are the hot names to keep an eye on for the Mississippi State coaching job? Let’s break down some potential candidates.
Ex-Mississippi State, Florida coach Dan Mullen
Athletic Director Zac Selmon has to make this call, right? Mullen elevated the program from anonymous punching bag in the SEC West into a team that was not only relevant but a perennial division title contender. The Bulldogs had only been to 13 bowl games prior to Mullen’s arrival in 2009. Under his leadership, they went to seven straight bowls (2010-16) during his eight-year stint. They were ranked No. 1 in the first-ever College Football Playoff Rankings in 2014 behind star quarterback Dak Prescott. Mullen went 34-18 in four years at Florida (2018-21), which included an SEC East title in 2020. He has been working in television since Florida dismissed him with one game remaining in the 2021 regular season.
Kansas coach Lance Leipold
There’s only one way to describe Leipold: miracle worker. The third-year coach Kansas coach has made the Jayhawks relevant in the Big 12 for the first time in more than a decade. They went 5-0 to start Leipold’s second season in 2022, which concluded with a Liberty Bowl appearance, the program’s first postseason berth since 2008. His current team is 7-3, which includes a 4-3 mark in the Big 12. They were ranked No. 16 in the College Football Playoff Rankings prior to Saturday’s loss to Texas Tech. Nevertheless, Leipold his already clinched the program’s first winning record since 2008 regardless of what happens the rest of the season. Prior to joining the Jayhawks, Leipold led Buffalo to a 37-33 record from 2015-20. The Bulls went to three straight bowl games during his final three seasons.
SMU coach Rhett Lashlee
Lashlee has led SMU to a 15-8 record in two seasons with the Mustangs, which includes an 8-2 mark overall and an unblemished record (6-0) in the AAC this season. This year’s offense ranks No. 1 in the AAC in yards per game (473.2) and scoring (40.5 points per game), and is second in yards per play (6.43). Prior to getting the gig in Dallas, Lashlee served as a Power Five offensive coordinator at Miami (2020-21) and Auburn ( 2013-16), and also led offenses at SMU (2018-19) and UConn (2017). One holdup could be the fact that SMU will be joining the ACC next season, and a path to the College Football Playoff will be much easier in that conference than it will be in a division-less SEC at Mississippi State.
Liberty coach Jamey Chadwell
Chadwell is a winner, plain and simple. His Flames are 9-0 this year, which is the program’s first in Conference USA after spending their previous four years as an FBS Independent. Prior to joining Liberty, he he spent five seasons at Coastal Carolina where he put the program on the map with double-digit win seasons in 2020 and 2021. His Chanticleers finished the 2020 season ranked No. 14 in the final AP Top 25, went undefeated during the regular season and lost to — ironically — Liberty in the Cure Bowl.
Oklahoma offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby
Lebby was hired after Brent Venables was brought back to the program to replace Lincoln Riley. The Sooners currently have the fourth-best offense in the country (505.4 yards per game) and also rank fourth nationally in scoring offense (41.8 points per game). The explosive Sooners are averaging 6.72 yards per play, good enough for 14th in the nation. Prior to being hired at Oklahoma, Lebby served as Ole Miss offensive coordinator under Lane Kiffin from 2020-21. Would Mississippi State welcome a former Rebels staffer to the program? If he can kick-start the offense, it would be pretty easy to overlook his time at ‘”the school up north.”
