Florida head coach Dan Mullen has watched the Gators play Georgia from afar over the past nine seasons at Mississippi State, but even from his perch in Starkville, he thinks the rivalry is in good shape.

Without actually saying as much, Mullen may have been throwing some shade toward Mississippi State and the Egg Bowl rivalry with Ole Miss which is currently in upheaval over NCAA sanctions involving the Rebels and Leo Lewis, who currently plays for the Bulldogs.

“It’s a healthy rivalry,” Mullen said as he took the stage at SEC Media Days Tuesday. “A lot of times in college football sometimes you get some rivalries that are maybe not as healthy.”

Florida had taken the last three games in Jacksonville until last season when the Bulldogs dominated in a 42-7 victory. Neither program has won more than three years in a row since the Gators since Steve Spurrier carried Florida to six straight wins from 1990-96. The Gators were 3-1 against the Bulldogs while Mullen was the offensive coordinator from 2005-08.

Mullen’s MSU teams won five times against the Rebels, but it’s the off-field happenings which have played a larger role in the Egg Bowl. Last year, Lewis testified at the Ole Miss Committee on Infractions hearing when he told investigators that an Ole Miss booster offered to pay him $10,000 to play for the Rebels which he denied.

Mullen, who was able to tread the water in his final months, removed himself from the situation and was hired by Florida. Now he’ll have the added pressure of keeping Florida on the winning side of what’s informally known as the world’s largest cocktail party.