5 candidates to replace Joe Moorhead as head coach at Mississippi State

5 candidates to replace Joe Moorhead at Mississippi State

NASHVILLE, TN - DECEMBER 30: Mississippi State Bulldogs Head Coach Joe Moorhead during the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl between the Mississippi State Bulldogs and the Louisville Cardinals on December, 30, 2019, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, TN. (Photo by Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

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Mandatory Credit: Sam Wasson/Getty Images /

2. Jim McElwain, Central Michigan Head Coach

The Chippewas went 1-11 in 2018 under John Bonamego, and then surprising landed on McElwain as their new head coach. A turnaround in fortunes came quickly, with an 8-4 regular-season record before losses to Miami of Ohio in the MAC title game and San Diego State in the New Mexico Bowl.

McElwain now has led a team to at least eight wins in five of his six full seasons as a head coach, at Colorado State, Florida and of course now Central Michigan (five full seasons in a row, since a 4-8 record in his first season at Colorado State). He also had plenty of big school experience on his resume as an assistant.

Mount Pleasant stands to be a stepping stone back to a bigger school for McElwain, either for one-year or a couple more. If Will Muschamp had been fired by South Carolina, a return to the SEC there could have been viable. But Mississippi State can now provide a late second chance to get back into the conference and the Power 5, if McElwain really wants it right now.

McElwain will surely leave some hard feelings behind at Central Michigan if he leaves after one year, with the program seemingly back on a good track. But as they look to capably replace Moorhead, that’s not Mississippi State’s problem.

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