Similarities Between Dan Mullen and Bo Wallace

Jul 15, 2014; Hoover, AL, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Dan Mullen talks to the media during the SEC Football Media Days at the Wynfrey Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

Let me just describe someone for you and see who first comes to mind. This person has helped elevate the program they represent after years of atrocious football. This person has played a big role in winning games for their football team. This person has also made some questionable decisions, and as a result of those decisions, caused their team to lose a game or put the outcome of a game in jeopardy. So who am I describing? If you said Dan Mullen, you’d be right. But if you also said Bo Wallace, you’d be correct as well. As much as neither fan base would like to admit it, the two have a lot in common.

The questionable decisions by Mullen to rotate entire units on the opening six drives of the game against UAB got me thinking about how to describe what Mullen does to both help and hurt our program. As I was pondering it, it occurred to me that the perfect parallel is up in Oxford. Bo Wallace has had a similar affect on the Rebels.

Bringing programs back from the ashes

Both Mullen and Wallace have played a huge role in getting their respective roles back to respectable football. Mullen inherited a talent depleted football team in 2009 and two years later put the Bulldogs on a streak of four straight winning seasons and bowl games. It’s one of the most successful run of years in the program’s history. Bo Wallace stabilized the quarterback position at Ole Miss in 2012. He made some big plays and had his best performance against the Bulldogs in 2012.

You can make the argument that neither program would be on the cusp of having a breakout season if it weren’t for Mullen at Mississippi State or Wallace at Ole Miss. The two have brought exactly what they needed to programs that were in dire straits before either of them got there. Mullen might surpass Jackie Sherrill as the all time winningest coach in Mississippi State history. Bo Wallace has put up numbers that will rival the best passer to ever play at Ole Miss, Eli Manning. Both have accomplished a lot for their respective schools.

When either of them are at their best, they do great. Take a look at what Mullen has done to lead the Bulldogs to victory.

• Played Chris Relf in the 2009 Egg Bowl despite minimal playing time and led the Bulldogs to a thrashing of the Rebels.
• Decided to just run the ball and never pass against Florida in 2010 and dare the Gators to stop it.
• Pulled Chris Relf as the starter when he was struggling against UAB in 2011, and let Tyler Russell lead the Dawgs to a brilliant 2nd Half.
• Burned the redshirt of Damian Williams against Alcorn State in 2013 to get the freshman some much needed playing time that paid off big in the games against Arkansas and Ole Miss.
• Took a gamble and played Dak Prescott in the 4th quarter against Ole Miss, and then he rolled the dice again in overtime and went for it on 4th and 2 from the goal line when Dak scored the winning touchdown.

Bo Wallace has doen a lot to help his team to victory as well.

• Played his best game in 2012 against Mississippi State and threw 5 touchdowns to get the Rebels to bowl eligibility.
• Was brilliant against LSU in 2013 and gave Hugh Freeze his signature win.
• Bounced back from a subpar performance against Boise St. and looked flawless against Vanderbilt.

Hurting their teams in the process

As many positive things that each of them has done, they have also done things to drive the fans that cheer for them absolutely bananas. Mullen has quite a list to work with.

• Calling an option play on 4th and goal inside the 2 against LSU in 2009 instead of a straight up run with Anthony Dixon that would have won the game for the Bulldogs.
• Sending in two play calls, a run and a pass, to Chris Relf on 3rd and goal inside the 5 against Auburn in 2011 instead of just telling him to pass it with a chance to tie the game.
• Never making a solid decision about the starting quarterback in 2013 and insisting on subbing them in and out.
• Calling three very conservative running plays right before the half in 2013 against Ole Miss that led to a blocked punt that tied the game.
• Rotating entire units on offense and defense early against UAB and not allowing Prescott or any of the other starters a chance to establish any rhythm.

Bo Wallace has made his fair share of questionable decisions that have hurt the Rebels in the process.

• Made an ill advised throw against Texas A&M on the Rebels’ final drive in 2012 to allow the Aggies to seal the victory.
• Has struggled to get the ball into the end zone inside the red zone.
• Threw two interceptions and fumbled the football into the end zone against Mississippi State, assuring the victory for the Bulldogs.
• Threw three interceptions against Boise State in the first half which never allowed the Rebels to pull away until the fourth quarter.

Mullen and Wallace are wild cards for both programs. When the two of them are at their best, they can lead their teams to heights that their fans can only dream of for their programs. When they do things that make us scratch our heads, they act as a hindrance to progress for the Bulldogs and Rebels. How well 2014 plays out for both schools will depend on which version of these two shows up for most games.