Dan Mullen makes odd recruiting comment, Florida ends press conference

The 2021 season has not gone as planned for Dan Mullen and the Florida Gators, as they have fallen short of expectations. The latest 34-7 loss to Georgia paints a far different picture than the Gators’ preseason AP No. 13 ranking would suggest.

In Mullen’s weekly press conference, the Florida head coach took it a step further, making a reference to recruiting that might not sit well with Gators fans.

“We’re in the season now,” Mullen said, when asked about Florida’s recruiting process. “We’ll do recruiting after the season — when it gets to recruiting time we can talk about recruiting.”

According to Gators Territory beat writer Nick de la Torre, Mullen’s ill-advised comment, which suggests that Florida isn’t recruiting much mid-season, led to another strange moment on Monday: Florida ended its weekly press conference shortly thereafter.

“Dan Mullen’s press conference ends abruptly, no players made available. I was in line to ask a question, not called on,” de la Torre tweeted. “Not sure what’s going on at UF.”

Paul Finebaum questions Mullen’s job security at Florida

Florida climbed up as high as No. 10 in the AP poll, but the Gators — now just 4-4 and 2-4 in the SEC — have lost their ranking and for good reason. Florida’s offense was almost nonexistent on Saturday; the Gators managed to tally just 194 passing yards and 161 rushing yards, all while committing three turnovers — two via Anthony Richardson interceptions and one from a Richardson fumble. As the Gators continue to falter, ESPN college football analyst Paul Finebaum had some concerns regarding Mullen’s job security in Gainesville.

“If there is good news for Dan Mullen, and there really isn’t, he got shamed into starting [Anthony Richardson] because that’s what the fans wanted, and he did it, and that worked out brilliantly,” Finebaum said sarcastically on The ESPN College Football Podcast, as Richardson completed 12 of his 20 passing attempts for 82 yards, two interceptions and a fumble. “Florida, the rest of the way, is at South Carolina, Samford, at Missouri and Florida State. I will tell you what: those are all very winnable games. Should he lose one of those games, he would — just beware. It’s already nasty and negative in relation to Dan Mullen.”

Heading into the game, as Finebaum alluded, Mullen was tasked with naming a starting quarterback, as the Gators had two options under center. Jones, a senior, was Florida’s opening-day starter, and heading into the game he completed just over 67 percent of his passes for 1,305 passing yards, ten touchdowns and nine interceptions. He’d also added 495 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns on 85 carries for Florida, while Richardson, a redshirt freshman, had not yet started a game. In appearances off the bench, Richardson completed 57 percent of his passes for 392 passing yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions before Saturday, while adding 348 yards and three touchdowns on just 28 carries, good for an average of 12.4 yards per rush.

Perhaps succumbing to pressure, Mullen went with Richardson; but in truth, both Florida signal callers were unable to answer the calls. In addition to Richardson’s turnover-ridden day, Jones completed just 10 of 14 passing attempts for 112 yards, and he ran for 22 yards, including Florida’s only touchdown of the day.

“I’m going to spare you, I’m sure Dan Mullen is in good shape because I think I said that a week ago. He’s the best play caller in America. But the fans — the ones I talked to yesterday and over the weekend in Jacksonville — their anger is growing towards him,” Finebaum continued. “They don’t think he can recruit on an elite level, which is very important when you have Kirby Smart, who I believe is the best recruiter in the country, and that includes Nick Saban. Kirby Smart never stops recruiting. … Dan Mullen does it it haphazardly, and it’s hurt him. He’s got some great players there; he developed players, look what happened with Kyle Trask. That is the big argument against him.”

Mullen’s job is safe at Florida — for now, at least. But Finebaum believes that the head coach, who’s amassed a 33-13 record since taking over the Gators, might see his days numbered.

“I think there will be a lot of changes at the end of the season,” Finebaum said. “Dan Mullen will survive, but the question is for how long.”