Mississippi State Reportedly Fires HC Joe Moorhead After 2 Bleak Seasons
By Michael Luciano
After falling to Scott Satterfield and Louisville in the Music City Bowl and ending up below .500, Mississippi State has finally had enough of head coach Joe Moorhead.
The Bulldogs fired Moorhead after he went 14-12 in his two seasons at the helm in Starkville.
Joe Moorhead fired at Mississippi State after 2 seasons, sources told @Stadium. His dismissal coincides w/team’s late season swoon, discipline issues plaguing program thru out season & “he was not a great fit,” source said https://t.co/0xhhpwogHH
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) January 3, 2020
Moorhead first rose to prominence as the head coach of FCS power Fordham, where he went 38-13 and led the Rams to the playoffs three times. He was hired by James Franklin in 2016 to be Penn State's offensive coordinator for two seasons, and was instrumental in the development of Trace McSorley and Saquon Barkley.
Moorhead was named the head coach at Mississippi State in 2018 after Dan Mullen left to go back to Florida. Moorhead went 8-5 in his first season, but a disappointing 6-7 year led to him getting the boot.
Moorhead oversaw the best defense in terms of yards-per-game in the country in 2018, but most of the stars on that unit went to the NFL. Garrett Shrader and Tommy Stevens proved to somehow be a downgrade as compared to Nick Fitzgerald, and the offense sputtered out in a 6-7 season despite having the SEC's leading rusher in Kylin Hill.
Joe Moorhead
— Gil Maneclang (@Rx_MoreCowbell) December 31, 2019
Year 1: Nation’s No. 1 defense
Year 2: SEC’s leading rusher
Record: 14-12
Moorhead will almost assuredly find a Power 5 offensive coordinator job or a Group of 5 head coaching opportunity, but there aren't a ton of positives related to his time in Starkville. Given how tough the SEC West is, 2020 could be a long season for the Bulldogs.