Some Florida fans were rubbed the wrong way by one of Dan Mullen’s post-game quotes Saturday after the Gators lost to Missouri 38-17.

“That’s how it works,” Mullen told reporters. “I’m gonna be honest with you, this is how it works too, when we sell out the stadium, we win a championship. It doesn’t go the other way. It’s not we win, you sell out. You sell out, you win. Go watch teams that have built programs. That’s how it works.”

He was asked Monday about being frustrated or disappointed with the fans and clarified his comments.

“I’m not disappointed in any of the fan base … I think they have really tried to buy-in since we got here,” Mullen told the local media in his weekly press conference.

He elaborated on that, saying he sees fan support and attendance as essential to getting the program back to championship success.

“We’re all in this together,” Mullen said. “To get this program to championship level it’s not just my play calling, blitzing on defense or who we play at quarterback. It’s a program as a whole and the fans are a part of that.”

Regardless of Mullen’s pleas, attendance is likely to be down again Saturday when South Carolina comes to town. The SEC East has been settled and Florida has lost back-to-back games, two things sure to impact ticket sales. A noon kickoff with pregame tailgating opportunities limited to the morning won’t help either. It will be interesting to see if Mullen addresses attendance again come Saturday afternoon.