I bet Mullen's regret in coaching will be leaving State

[Tractorman]

“You know,” Mullen said, “if you had to associate me with coaching somewhere, you say, ‘Hey, where’s, you know, what is your school? What is your school that you coached at?’ I’d say Mississippi State. That would be the school I would claim.”

He also goes into how it wasn't his fault he failed at Florida.

SDS article

 

[biodawg]

He may regret it, but he owed it to himself to take a big job and see if he could win a NC. I bet he regrets taking the Florida job more than he regrets leaving State. Should’ve maybe hung around for a little longer and waited some something a little more stable to open up, IMO.

 

[WrightGuy821]

“You know,” Mullen said, “if you had to associate me with coaching somewhere, you say, ‘Hey, where’s, you know, what is your school? What is your school that you coached at?’ I’d say Mississippi State. That would be the school I would claim.”

He also goes into how it wasn't his fault he failed at Florida.

SDS article

The rest of that interview in the podcast Mulled talked about how it really was time for him to leave at State. He owed it to himself to go to a program that he could compete for a National Championship year in and year out at. Even though things didn't last at Florida it was definitely the right move for him. He elevated Mississippi State to a place where we could compete for 2nd or even potentially 1st in the west, but it's hard to win consistently at State. He went to 3 NY6 bowls in his 4 years at Florida, and only 1 in his tenure at MSU.

 

[pseudonym]

The only way Florida doesn’t regret firing him is if they make the CFP (regularly) without him. They would have been in the 12-team CFP three years in a row according to CFP rankings.

Imagine if the CFP started at 12 teams in 2014. He would have taken two different schools to four CFPs in seven years. How differently would people think of his coaching in that scenario, exact same regular season results?

 

[Motodawg]

Link?

 

[OG Goat Holder]

He may regret it, but he owed it to himself to take a big job and see if he could win a NC. I bet he regrets taking the Florida job more than he regrets leaving State. Should’ve maybe hung around for a little longer and waited some something a little more stable to open up, IMO.

Just one more year. Just see what we could have done in 2018. But it didn't matter, his mind was made up to leave and go to Tennessee (which would have been another bad fit for him). And his recruiting was stacked up to win immediately, he knew 2019 and 2020 were going to be rocky if he by chance didn't get out after 2018. So he took the available boat.

The rest of that interview in the podcast Mulled talked about how it really was time for him to leave at State. He owed it to himself to go to a program that he could compete for a National Championship year in and year out at. Even though things didn't last at Florida it was definitely the right move for him. He elevated Mississippi State to a place where we could compete for 2nd or even potentially 1st in the west, but it's hard to win consistently at State. He went to 3 NY6 bowls in his 4 years at Florida, and only 1 in his tenure at MSU.

I just don't think so. He needed to go to a program with recruits in proximity, that also wasn't an elite power with dumb expectations, but had more resources than MSU. Florida State comes to mind. Penn State. Maybe even Georgia Tech. But I still say he was close to a perfect fit at MSU. He just made a bad decision there on Florida. Yeah it's tougher to win but he got us close and we would have paid him just as much.

BUT - if he's happier now, then he made the right decision. He's rich and doesn't have to work. But you can tell his competitive side isn't satisfied.

 

[The Peeper]

I bet he regrets wearing those shorts that 1 time a lot too

 

[mstateglfr]

“You know,” Mullen said, “if you had to associate me with coaching somewhere, you say, ‘Hey, where’s, you know, what is your school? What is your school that you coached at?’ I’d say Mississippi State. That would be the school I would claim.”

He also goes into how it wasn't his fault he failed at Florida.

SDS article

Hell yeah, I would argue it wasnt my fault if I had been in his shoes at Florida too.
He was there not quite 4 seasons and finished 6th in the country, 6th in the country, and 12th in the country. He played in a Peach Bowl, Orange Bowl, and Cotton Bowl. He won the Eastern division and almost won the SEC Championship Game.
Yeah, 2021 didnt end well, but its absurd to claim he failed at Florida, especially considering the program's record the year before he arrived.

 

[OG Goat Holder]

Hell yeah, I would argue it wasnt my fault if I had been in his shoes at Florida too.
He was there not quite 4 seasons and finished 6th in the country, 6th in the country, and 12th in the country. He played in a Peach Bowl, Orange Bowl, and Cotton Bowl. He won the Eastern division and almost won the SEC Championship Game.
Yeah, 2021 didnt end well, but its absurd to claim he failed at Florida, especially considering the program's record the year before he arrived.

Sooooooo....yeah, he shouldn't have taken that job.

We all know he's a good coach. Some of us realize that he wasn't a great fit there, but won some anyway with another coaches players. We also know he was Stricklin's third, desperation choice.

But again, he was leaving anyway, which caused an emotion decision in haste.

 

[drexeldog23]

The rest of that interview in the podcast Mulled talked about how it really was time for him to leave at State. He owed it to himself to go to a program that he could compete for a National Championship year in and year out at. Even though things didn't last at Florida it was definitely the right move for him. He elevated Mississippi State to a place where we could compete for 2nd or even potentially 1st in the west, but it's hard to win consistently at State. He went to 3 NY6 bowls in his 4 years at Florida, and only 1 in his tenure at MSU.

yeah but he went to 4 New Years Day bowls at MSU, which is the equivalent of NY6 at Florida. w/o looking it up i believe we only had 3 in our history before he came here.

 

[SchrodingersDawg]

Can't tell if wearing shorts, but got moves like Jagger.

 

[WrightGuy821]

yeah but he went to 4 New Years Day bowls at MSU, which is the equivalent of NY6 at Florida. w/o looking it up i believe we only had 3 in our history before he came here.

That's what I'm saying, he felt like he had peaked here at Mississippi State whether it was true or not. He saw an opportunity that he believed would get him back into the CFP discussion and ran with it. He didn't think he could ever win one here

 

[kired]

I never followed him closely at Florida... but he had 2.75 good seasons there. The LSU loss in 2020 started the downward spiral. They had a legit shot at the CFP until then. He went 29-6 before that, but lost 3 straight to end 2020... and then the 2021 season happened.

 

[60sdog]

What he did at the MSU is overrated. He lost three egg bowls by being checked out.

 

[DoggieDaddy13]

I bet he regrets rolling over as opposed to STRAINING and GRINDING when Hugh Jesus Freezus rolled into Oxford.

For all his talk, Mullen was not the GRINDER he needed to be to recruit at State. And that's just a cold hard fact.

He could damn sure coach up a QB, but he was only a slightly better than average SEC head coach.

 

[ChinaDogSunflower]

It was Florida's budget and their facilities that were his biggest Achilles heel in recruiting lol. That must be why he didn't "talk recruiting until after the season"

He sure is an ***. He was OUR *** for 9yrs. And he restored dignity to the on-field Mississippi State product.
He could have made it to Atlanta or beyond, but he was thinking big picture and he made his decision(s).

 

[kired]

I bet he regrets rolling over as opposed to STRAINING and GRINDING when Hugh Jesus Freezus rolled into Oxford.

For all his talk, Mullen was not the GRINDER he needed to be to recruit at State. And that's just a cold hard fact.

He could damn sure coach up a QB, but he was only a slightly better than average SEC head coach.

This is why I never understood him not making the jump to NFL. Did he ever flirt with that idea? I can't remember.

Seems like he'd be a good fit. Don't have to recruit, and proven to be a good QB coach.

 

[drexeldog23]

That's what I'm saying, he felt like he had peaked here at Mississippi State whether it was true or not. He saw an opportunity that he believed would get him back into the CFP discussion and ran with it. He didn't think he could ever win one here

really and truly he had probably peaked here... i still believe he could have kept us consistently in lower tier new years day bowls. maybe could have gotten us to one NY6 bowl game , but certainly not 3 in 4 years tho. our 1st bowl game was the 1937 Orange bowl, followed by the 1941 Orange and that one followed by the 1999 Cotton Bowl . so in the 73 previous years 3 NYD bowls and 4 in his 9 year span. me and you are definitely on the same side, i just think the NYD bowls are our NY6 bowls.

 

[paindonthurt]

The rest of that interview in the podcast Mulled talked about how it really was time for him to leave at State. He owed it to himself to go to a program that he could compete for a National Championship year in and year out at. Even though things didn't last at Florida it was definitely the right move for him. He elevated Mississippi State to a place where we could compete for 2nd or even potentially 1st in the west, but it's hard to win consistently at State. He went to 3 NY6 bowls in his 4 years at Florida, and only 1 in his tenure at MSU.

10 years is a long time to be in a job.
Mixing it up every 7 to 10 isn’t a bad idea in any job.

New life and new energy.

florida made a bad move firing him when they did but it’s the world of college athletics.

win and win now.

 

[thatsbaseball]

Honestly I wouldn't doubt he had a few regrets up until the NIL **** hit the fan. I'll bet now he's feeling pretty good about his current situation.

 

[eckie1]

The rest of that interview in the podcast Mulled talked about how it really was time for him to leave at State. He owed it to himself to go to a program that he could compete for a National Championship year in and year out at. Even though things didn't last at Florida it was definitely the right move for him. He elevated Mississippi State to a place where we could compete for 2nd or even potentially 1st in the west, but it's hard to win consistently at State. He went to 3 NY6 bowls in his 4 years at Florida, and only 1 in his tenure at MSU.

He had a playoff shot more times here than he ever did at Florida. And he sure as hell pissed that chance away by blowing the 1st half at Bama and getting teabagged by old miss.

It doesn’t seem like any of the big 3 Florida schools are competing for playoff spots these days…. Unless you count UCF’s natty.*******

It’s definitely easier at UF to make better bowls, but I’m calling bullschitt on the “competing for natties every year” angle. He was their 38th choice.

 

[BigDawg0074]

He may regret it, but he owed it to himself to take a big job and see if he could win a NC. I bet he regrets taking the Florida job more than he regrets leaving State. Should’ve maybe hung around for a little longer and waited some something a little more stable to open up, IMO.

Wasn’t it speculated that he had the TN job in hand but left them at the altar? If that’s true then the Florida job probably made sense for him at the time.

 

[BingleCocktail]

I BET THIS THREAD READS LIKE ITS FROM THE PROM DATE THAT WAS ST00D UP BY HER BOYFRIEND **

(and i havent even reddit)

 

[GloryDawg]

I will say this. He was one Egg Bowl away from getting into the playoff. So, he proved it could be done. He was offered the same amount of money to stay that Florida was offering. The year after he left was probably going to be his best year at State and with that defense possibly gotten to the play off. Moorehead got to 8 wins with that team. Mullen was a way much better coach. He could have won 11 to 12 games. He can say what he wants but he just wanted to go to Florida. He was smelling what the Grasshopper was cooking. However I would take Mullen back way before trasshopper would be welcomed back.

 

[Pilgrimdawg]

If Dan had learned to manage his ego and figure out how to recruit just slightly better, he could have eventually found himself mentioned as one of the long time top Coaches of all time. He apparently couldn’t do either one and now he is out of coaching. It’s a real shame for him and a real what could have been for us.

 

[patdog]

Wasn’t it speculated that he had the TN job in hand but left them at the altar? If that’s true then the Florida job probably made sense for him at the time.

He was gone to Tennessee. They even had the press conference scheduled. But he got the Florida job the night before.

 

[Johnnie Come Lately]

The rest of that interview in the podcast Mulled talked about how it really was time for him to leave at State. He owed it to himself to go to a program that he could compete for a National Championship year in and year out at. Even though things didn't last at Florida it was definitely the right move for him. He elevated Mississippi State to a place where we could compete for 2nd or even potentially 1st in the west, but it's hard to win consistently at State. He went to 3 NY6 bowls in his 4 years at Florida, and only 1 in his tenure at MSU.

He built State into one of the most stable programs in the SEC, that is no small task. I hate that he left and I really hate that he left with the team he would have coming back in 2018, but at the end of the day I don't blame him or have any animosity toward him.

Florida was was the best option for him at that juncture in time and they offered him the job, so he had take it. What other slots should he have waited on in late 2017? The Tennessee job could probably have been his, but he got the UF offer and made the right choice. Alabama and Georgia were not going to be coach shopping anytime soon, and it was unlikely that he would have been serious consideration anyway. A&M was working on giving Jimbo that ridiculous contract during that time frame. The only jobs that would be worth holding out for would be LSU or Auburn. Auburn's alumni environment is batshit crazy, and LSU is just batshit crazy in general. I am sure there could be some Big 10 schools that might would be a good fit but I don't feel like doing the mental gymnastics on that. I have no idea what happened at Florida, but I think it was mistake to fire him to turn around and hire Billy Napier. If you fire someone with a resume like Mullen (short of some type of legal, NCAA, caught with pants down issues) you better make a homerun hire. I will say, the fact that Mullen is not coaching again - its just because he does not want to.

 

[eckie1]

He built State into one of the most stable programs in the SEC, that is no small task. I hate that he left and I really hate that he left with the team he would have coming back in 2018, but at the end of the day I don't blame him or have any animosity toward him.

Florida was was the best option for him at that juncture in time and they offered him the job, so he had take it. What other slots should he have waited on in late 2017? The Tennessee job could probably have been his, but he got the UF offer and made the right choice. Alabama and Georgia were not going to be coach shopping anytime soon, and it was unlikely that he would have been serious consideration anyway. A&M was working on giving Jimbo that ridiculous contract during that time frame. The only jobs that would be worth holding out for would be LSU or Auburn. Auburn's alumni environment is batshit crazy, and LSU is just batshit crazy in general. I am sure there could be some Big 10 schools that might would be a good fit but I don't feel like doing the mental gymnastics on that. I have no idea what happened at Florida, but I think it was mistake to fire him to turn around and hire Billy Napier. If you fire someone with a resume like Mullen (short of some type of legal, NCAA, caught with pants down issues) you better make a homerun hire. I will say, the fact that Mullen is not coaching again - its just because he does not want to.

Hell, with the bank he’s pulling down now he’d be crazy to work. I don’t know, but he could jeopardize his payout by doing so.

He’s such an egomaniac that it would be hard for him accept a school that would be in the market for a damaged brand like him. And, none of the big boys will look his way again until he’s proven himself somewhere.

I can’t imagine him bootstrapping his way back up in college again. He could be useful in the NFL as a QB coach. I don’t know if his ego would allow that or not, though.

Pride’s a *****, yo. This is the poster child for it.

 

[Bobby Ricigliano]

Can't tell if wearing shorts, but got moves like Jagger.

No, no he doesn’t.

 

[MSUDC11-2.0]

I’m totally over my beef with Mullen. He did a lot for our program. The breakup sucked but time has healed those wounds for me. I hope we are able to celebrate him at some point in the not too distant future.

 

[StumpNewGround]

I’m totally over my beef with Mullen. He did a lot for our program. The breakup sucked but time has healed those wounds for me. I hope we are able to celebrate him at some point in the not too distant future.

I’m not. Met him personally at a non public event around a state versus state all star game. He’s a prick.

 

[paindonthurt]

He had a playoff shot more times here than he ever did at Florida. And he sure as hell pissed that chance away by blowing the 1st half at Bama and getting teabagged by old miss.

It doesn’t seem like any of the big 3 Florida schools are competing for playoff spots these days…. Unless you count UCF’s natty.*******

It’s definitely easier at UF to make better bowls, but I’m calling bullschitt on the “competing for natties every year” angle. He was their 38th choice.

Where did the Mullen touch you son?

 

[Motodawg]

Can someone kindly tell me where to find this interview?

 

[Ranchdawg]

He built State into one of the most stable programs in the SEC, that is no small task. I hate that he left and I really hate that he left with the team he would have coming back in 2018, but at the end of the day I don't blame him or have any animosity toward him.

Florida was was the best option for him at that juncture in time and they offered him the job, so he had take it. What other slots should he have waited on in late 2017? The Tennessee job could probably have been his, but he got the UF offer and made the right choice. Alabama and Georgia were not going to be coach shopping anytime soon, and it was unlikely that he would have been serious consideration anyway. A&M was working on giving Jimbo that ridiculous contract during that time frame. The only jobs that would be worth holding out for would be LSU or Auburn. Auburn's alumni environment is batshit crazy, and LSU is just batshit crazy in general. I am sure there could be some Big 10 schools that might would be a good fit but I don't feel like doing the mental gymnastics on that. I have no idea what happened at Florida, but I think it was mistake to fire him to turn around and hire Billy Napier. If you fire someone with a resume like Mullen (short of some type of legal, NCAA, caught with pants down issues) you better make a homerun hire. I will say, the fact that Mullen is not coaching again - its just because he does not want to.

I would say that he and Croom built our program into one of the most stable in the SEC. Croom had the sense to realize we couldn't recruit against against our $EC brethren so he went the redshirt program route. When Mullen came in we were developing some good players with that program and Mullen kept it going.

 

[mcdawg22]

Can someone kindly tell me where to find this interview?

It’s link at the bottom of the OP’s post

 

[mcdawg22]

I would say that redacted Croom built our program into one of the most stable in the SEC.

 

[ChinaDogSunflower]

This is why I never understood him not making the jump to NFL. Did he ever flirt with that idea? I can't remember.

Seems like he'd be a good fit. Don't have to recruit, and proven to be a good QB coach.

I'm surprised no NFL team every gave him any shot either. I thought I remember his goal when getting to state, was to coach in the NFL.

Guess he was just too difficult to work with

 

[Barkman Turner Overdrive]

I will say this. He was one Egg Bowl away from getting into the playoff. So, he proved it could be done. He was offered the same amount of money to stay that Florida was offering. The year after he left was probably going to be his best year at State and with that defense possibly gotten to the play off. Moorehead got to 8 wins with that team. Mullen was a way much better coach. He could have won 11 to 12 games. He can say what he wants but he just wanted to go to Florida. He was smelling what the Grasshopper was cooking. However I would take Mullen back way before trasshopper would be welcomed back.

First, we weren’t getting into the 2014 playoffs, even with an Egg Bowl win. We didn’t win the division, let alone the conference. Secondly, I doubt he could have won 11 games in 2018. Yes, he is a much better coach than Moronhead, but he would have been job shopping during the late fall 2018 season like he did EVERY OTHER season he coached for us when we were competitive. Thirdly, I want neither him nor Loafers back.

 

[Barkman Turner Overdrive]

I'm surprised no NFL team every gave him any shot either. I thought I remember his goal when getting to state, was to coach in the NFL.

Guess he was just too difficult to work with

The offense he runs is not conducive for the health of NFL QBs.

 

[GloryDawg]

First, we weren’t getting into the 2014 playoffs, even with an Egg Bowl win. We didn’t win the division, let alone the conference. Secondly, I doubt he could have won 11 games in 2018. Yes, he is a much better coach than Moronhead, but he would have been job shopping during the late fall 2018 season like he did EVERY OTHER season he coached for us when we were competitive. Thirdly, I want neither him nor Loafers back.

Each has their own opinion. You are no more an expert than I am. I am not going to be trick into arguing about it.