Greg McElroy calls Mississippi State's 2024 SEC schedule the 'weirdest' of them all

Opponents for the 2024 season were revealed on Wednesday by the SEC. Some fanbases are more likely happier with the results than others. You can likely count Mississippi State as a confused one, with ESPN’s Greg McElroy describing the Bulldogs’ schedule as weird.

First thing Mississippi State probably did was make sure the Egg Bowl was on the schedule. Check. Next, maybe one of the neighboring foes in Alabama or Auburn. No such luck. Head out West to find LSU? That would be a no from the SEC.

Overall, Mississippi State got three old SEC West opponents (Arkansas, Texas A&M, and Ole Miss). The other five were either SEC East programs or newcomers, Texas. And it’s not even the long-time crossover opponent the Bulldogs had in Kentucky.

“Probably the weirdest schedule of them all,” McElroy said. “You get the Egg Bowl but that’s pretty much it. You get five teams from the SEC East. It’s only three teams you played on an annual basis but you get the Egg Bowl. Felt like the got a little bit of the short end of the stick as far as games that matter to their fanbase.”

With Mississippi State playing a non-traditional schedule, McElroy began to look for some positives. One was maybe facing off against Florida, a place where there used to be some resentment from Starkville. Head coach Dan Mullen famously left for the Gators but since his firing, there have not been too many feuds between the two.

“Florida and Mississippi State, at one point, had tons of vitriol because Dan Mullen left Mississippi State for Florida,” McElroy said. “But that has kind of subsided. I don’t feel like there was as much animosity as there once was. Either way, not a ton of tradition between the two teams, and not a game you would say ‘I got to see Mississippi State, I got to see Florida.'”

The schedule might be weird but at the end of the day, one game truly matters to Mississippi State. The Egg Bowl has been one of the SEC’s best rivalries over the past few years. Being played on Thanksgiving has given the matchup more of a national platform as well, showing off its hilarious nature.

A few months of the season will have to pass before they get to the Ole Miss game though. Until then, unfamiliar faces will be lining across Mississippi State.