The head coaching rumor mill is in full force following Florida’s dismissal of Jim McElwain, and one name linked to the job opening is Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen.
It really should come as no surprise that Mullen has been connected to the Gators. Mullen previously coached at Florida as offensive coordinator from 2005-2008. His offense was consistently dynamic and helped lead Florida to BCS National Championships in 2006 and 2008.
Mullen left after 2008 to take the head coaching job at MSU where he has continued to put up consistent numbers. The Bulldogs have just two losing seasons in eight years leading up to 2017, and Mullen’s 67 wins rank second all-time at MSU. He is just seven wins shy of Jackie Sherrill’s school record (74).
Mullen was asked about the open position during his press conference Monday, and it sounds like Mullen is content with the Bulldogs.
“I’m in a great position here. I think we’ve been able to build this program up. I’ve had my hand in how the facility’s been built. We’ve been able to recruit the type of players we want to recruit into our system. I have unbelievable support from our athletic director, who is also a coach, so he has a great understanding of what we’re trying to do.
“I might be one of the most fortunate coaches in the country with our president of the university, who was a football player. There’s not a whole lot of presidents you’ll see that are dancing in locker rooms like our president after certain games. I think we’re very fortunate here too that through the university, they’ve allowed us to establish and build our program with the way of the vision that we have. We have everybody on the same page, so I’m very fortunate that way.”
Finally, Mullen was asked about comparing his time at both schools, and Mullen reiterated his focus is on building a winner with the Bulldogs.
“I’m really happy here. Look at what we have as a program with the administration and the direction of where this program is headed right now. I haven’t really thought much about it, except really worrying about UMass. I don’t like to speculate on that stuff. I’ve been here long enough; everybody knows that. As the year goes on, it gets into that silly season of who’s going where and what’s going to happen and all that. Our focus is completely on UMass this week because they’re an excellent football team. I’m very happy with what we’re building here. We’re building for a great future right now.”
Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.
