It has not been a good two-week stretch for the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

From Dak Prescott and teammates being bloodied during a spring break trip to De’Runnya Wilson’s recent drug arrest to even more recent allegations of MSU players’ involvement in an assault on campus, it feels like forever ago that the Dawgs were the darling 10-win team of 2014.

Mississippi State tried to turn its focus back to football Tuesday during its first spring practice of 2015, moving the spring opener up one day from its originally scheduled date of Wednesday.

Nevertheless, head coach Dan Mullen couldn’t escape questions about the recent incidents surrounding his program. When asked if he’d talked to his team about the incidents and how to avoid them in the future, Mullen confirmed he had addressed his team and added he and his staff are always trying to teach their players to make good decisions.

“These guys are kids,” Mullen told the Jackson Clarion-Ledger. They want to go out … and then they’re going to go out and try to have fun. You try to get guys to make good decisions but they’re college kids.”

When asked how Prescott appeared in his return to the field, Mullen said he looked fine and did not show any residual effects from his altercation in Panama City Beach, Florida, last week.

“He threw a bad pass in the first seven on seven,” Mullen said jokingly when asked about any after-effects from Prescott’s run-in. “He’s fine. I think it’s a learning experience for him. He wants to be a college kid.”

Mullen shared some interesting thoughts on dealing with a college star who’s stardom transcends the lifestyle of the average college student. Prescott is far from the first NFL-bound quarterback Mullen has coached at the college level, and he says every time a player ventures into that realm of superstardom it can be difficult.

“It’s always still hard. I’ve been around it before. Tim Tebow couldn’t be a college kid. At the very end of his career Alex Smith was hurting to be a college kid,” Mullen said. For context’s sake, Mullen was Tebow’s offensive coordinator at Florida and Smith’s OC at Utah. “You see that with guys. But they’ve got to learn. They can’t go lock themselves in their rooms.”

To watch Mullen’s entire post-practice interview, check out the video above courtesy of the Clarion-Ledger.