Mississippi State made its first stop on the 2018 Road Dawgs tour on Thursday, coming by the Vicksburg Convention Center for a lunchtime stop.

New football head coach Joe Moorhead was the headlining speaker, and reigning Miss Mississippi Anne Elizabeth Buys, opened the conference up with a short speech and a prayer.

Moorhead said he was very excited to begin the tour in Vicksburg. The caravan continued on to a dinner in Cleveland later Thursday, and will include eight more stops around the southeast over the next week.

“I’m excited to meet some Mississippi State alumni, fans of the program, spread the good word of Bulldog football, and this is a great way to kick it off,” Moorhead said.

Moorhead talked about his transition from offensive coordinator at Penn State to becoming the Bulldogs’ head coach, and from living in the north to the south. He also outlined his goals for the program as he prepares to follow the successful nine-year run of Dan Mullen, who left to become the coach at Florida.

“I no longer want Mississippi State to be viewed as the little engine that could, that moral victories are acceptable and that we’re fine with mediocrity,” Moorhead said. “If we’re not sitting here talking about our expectation level is to eventually win the SEC and compete for a national championship, and that our actions reflect our goals, then (athletic director John Cohen) hired the wrong guy.”

The fans in attendance reacted favorably to those statements, with Vicksburg resident Michael Ellis saying he absolutely felt Moorhead was the right coach to push Mississippi State forward.

“He seems very organized, stresses discipline, fundamentals and execution,” Ellis said.

Will Caruth held a similar view.

“He was really enthusiastic. He clearly has adjusted to the south very well, and I think he’s going to be a great leader for our football team,” Caruth said.

Caruth said Moorhead’s speech confirmed what he’d heard about him.

“He’s a great coach, very knowledgeable, just excited to see what he’s going to do with the team this year, because he has a good team returning,” Caruth said.

Rick Ingram said the event was put together very well.

“I really enjoyed the coach’s discussions to take us all the way to the SEC championship, national championship. That’s a good way to start off,” Ingram said. “I think that he has good plans, he has good experience, and I’m really looking forward to seeing the team come out and execute like he was talking about.”

Besides hearing Moorhead speak, the event was an unofficial meeting of the Warren County Chapter of the Mississippi State Alumni Association.

Huel Sillis said it was great to see old friends and meet new ones at the event, and that it was great to meet Moorhead and get a poster signed by him.

“It’ll have a special place in my husband’s office at home,” Sillis said.

Meanwhile, Buys was thrilled to be part of the event.

“It’s incredible. As a Mississippi State student, it was great to just be a part of the Alumni Association’s event today,” Buys said. “It was so great to hear coach Moorhead share his passion and desire for the Mississippi State football team and the goals he has. He has very high goals for Mississippi State, and I’m really looking forward to everything they will showcase in the fall.”

Buys said she was very excited about how Moorhead had done as the head coach so far. The Bulldogs wrapped up spring practice in late April, and will begin preseason camp in early August. The season starts Sept. 1 against Stephen F. Austin, at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville.

“He’s very motivating, and he’s very relatable to people of all ages, not just football players, and that’s really key in a department of athletics, is to be able to relate to your fans, families, students and your players,” Buys said.

2018 MISSISSIPPI STATE SCHEDULE
All times TBA
Sept. 1 – Stephen F. Austin
Sept. 8 – at Kansas State
Sept. 15 – Louisiana-Lafayette
Sept. 22 – *at Kentucky
Sept. 29 – *Florida
Oct. 6 – *Auburn
Oct. 13 – Open date
Oct. 20 – *at LSU
Oct. 27 – *Texas A&M
Nov. 3 – Louisiana Tech
Nov. 10 – *at Alabama
Nov. 17 – *Arkansas
Nov. 22 – *at Ole Miss
*Southeastern Conference games