In the wake of Mississippi State freshman defensive lineman Keith Joseph Jr.’s tragic death on Nov. 6, Bulldogs coach Dan Mullen delivered an emotional and heartfelt press conference on Monday.

Joseph and his father, Keith Joseph Sr., who played linebacker at Mississippi State, were both killed on Friday afternoon in a one-car accident.

Fighting back tears at times, Mullen spoke about Joseph’s death and how he and his team have been dealing with it together.

Mullen also gave some insight as to the type of person and student Joseph was.

Mullen added that the team’s freshmen all met together at his house after receiving the news of Joseph’s death.

There’s no easy transition in a press conference when something so sad occurs, but Mullen did also talk about the Bulldogs’ 31-13 win over Missouri in Week 10 and previewed their upcoming battle with Alabama.

Mullen called the Crimson Tide the best team in America.

Mullen said the Bulldogs haven’t played this big of a game since last season and are going to have to take their play to the next level this week.

But Mississippi State is already playing extremely well right now and riding a four-game winning streak. The Bulldogs have been particularly solid in the red zone, and Mullen said that is due to a stellar quarterback in Dak Prescott and a lot of time spent on that area in practice.

Although he only had 2 tackles against Missouri, one of them was a sack for Mississippi State defensive tackle Chris Jones, who was disruptive up front for the Bulldogs all night against the Tigers. Mullen said he thought it was Jones’ best performance of his career, which is really saying something, especially after an impressive freshman season in 2013.