10 Reasons Why Dan Mullen Will NOT be the Next Coach at Florida
Sep 13, 2014; Mobile, AL, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Dan Mullen laughs on the sidelines against the South Alabama Jaguars in the first quarter at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Glenn Andrews-USA TODAY Sports
I didn’t want to address the Dan Mullen to Florida fan campaign but I guess I will. I even told our writers that I didn’t want to bring it up. Why? For one thing why be a buzzkill. Secondly, I don’t think Dan Mullen is going anywhere, and certainly not Florida. But when not one, but two websites are created with the sole purpose of campaigning for Coach Mullen to go to Florida I’ll address the issue.
Here’s 10 reasons why Dan Mullen will NOT be the next head football coach at the University of Florida (in no particular order):
1. His family likes Starkville. Yep, believe it or not that is possible. His kids were born in Starkville and his wife loves Mississippi. $3 million goes a long way too, and that’s sure to rise.
2. Mississippi State has the money to pay Coach Mullen whatever he wants. MSU spends roughly $10 million less than Ole Miss on football with basically the same athletic budget. There’s wiggle room.
3. The Mullens didn’t like Florida too much. Why would you? After seeing the pressure of the Florida job up close and personal for four years, then going to Mississippi State where there is virtually no pressure. Yeah, 10-15% of the fan base was skeptical about him when the Bulldogs were 4-6 last year, but after securing a 4th straight bowl game (with just a 6-6 record) that backed down to about 5%, and even those people were quietly waiting for the 2014 season. MSU is the least pressure-packed job in the SEC outside of Vanderbilt, and that’s just a fact.
4. Here is the list of places Florida has stolen their last five head coaches from:
- Texas defensive coordinator (Will Muschamp)
- Utah head coach (Urban Meyer)
- New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator (Ron Zook)
- Duke head coach (Steve Spurrier)
- Florida offensive coordinator (Galen Hall)
That dates back 30 years. No sign of Florida hiring another big school’s head coach. Gator fans, however, believe Nick Saban or Gus Malzahn would come to Gainesville if they just ask.
5. Coaching at Florida sucks. Sure, Steve Spurrier – an alumnus and Heisman Trophy winner at UF – stayed 12 years before leaving for the NFL, but look at the last three guys. Ron Zook wasn’t accepted from day one and despite a 20-13 record through his first 2.5 years he was fired after losing to Mississippi State. Seriously, he only got 2.5 years. He won 62% of his games at Florida but that wasn’t enough to give him the common courtesy of at least four years to build your program. Urban Meyer had great success winning two national titles but tried to quit after the 2009 season and then ultimately did after 2010. He spent just one year on the sidelines before he hopped right back in at Ohio State proving he wasn’t really that tired of coaching. Will Muschamp is about to lose it every five seconds. He’s almost hoping he gets fired so he can collect a paycheck before he outright quits.
6. Florida fans are the worst. They are the most fickle fan base in the country. If you aren’t winning 11-12 games you can’t expect them to support you or show up for games. Dan Mullen’s montra that “fan support comes before winning, not after” does not jive with Gator nation.
7. Mississippi players vs. Florida players. Do I need to go over the arrest records of Florida teams from the past 25 years? There’s a list 50 pages long while players at MSU have kept their nose clean – an arrest record that is a drop in the bucket compared to UF. So spend a little extra time finding hidden talent in Mississippi or reviewing police reports in Gainesville?
8. The state of Florida is where yankees go to retire. Dan is a yankee but only 42 years old. Why would he retire now?
9. Dan Mullen is tied with Darrell Royal (yes, that Darrell Royal) for the highest winning percentage (.600) at MSU since the legendary Allyn McKeen. He is already the 3rd winningest coach in MSU history behind McKeen and Jackie Sherrill. If he continues on his current pace he will be the winningest coach in school history by 2018. We are talking statues outside the stadium here.
10. The grass isn’t always greener on the other side. This is true both literally and figuratively. MSU’s turfgrass program is the best in the country in my opinion – have you seen Florida’s field? Looks like a swamp. When you have spent six years slowly building a program and creating a culture within the walls of the facilities and in the fanbase, why would you leave? Dan Mullen has the full 100% support of Scott Stricklin, he’s been given everything he’s asked for and he’s proven that Mississippi State can win – just look at that #1 ranking.