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Will Dan Mullen be at MSU forever?

By Josh Barnhill

Nov 28, 2015; Starkville, MS, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Dan Mullen greets fans at Dawg Walk before the game against the Mississippi Rebels at Davis Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Bush-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 28, 2015; Starkville, MS, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Dan Mullen greets fans at Dawg Walk before the game against the Mississippi Rebels at Davis Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Bush-USA TODAY Sports /
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Talking heads always seem to be planning Dan Mullen’s “escape” from Starkville, but there are signs that will never happen.

Allow me to theorize what Dan Mullen’s thought process has been throughout his tenure at MSU:

  • Gets a SEC job at age 36 – awesome!
  • Most likely expects to land a big job with pay raise (he was making $1.2 million his first two years) after a 9-4 season in 2010.
  • Either Miami doesn’t want him or he doesn’t want Miami, MSU raises his pay to $2.5 million so he stays for another few years making good money with very little pressure.
  • After breaking down barriers and shattering the record books in 2014, he could probably leave but there aren’t many good offers, and MSU raises his pay to $4 million.
  • After the 2015 season it’s now or never to leave, but he’s actually created the kind of program he probably wanted to be at 5-6 years ago: great facilities on fertile recruiting grounds and paying a handsome salary.

Dan Mullen has priced himself out of the market. He’s getting top dollar to coach at a school who is annually picked to finish last in the SEC. Every single year there are rumors on top of rumors about him going anywhere from Colorado to Penn State and everywhere in between…..but they never materialize.

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I could make an argument that Mullen has one of the premier jobs in America when you factor in resources available, salary and pressure to win.

Mullen is as secure at Mississippi State as Steve Spurrier was at South Carolina. There’s almost nothing he could do to get fired outside of an off-the-field scandal or going 2-10. But in the prime of his career at age 44, Mullen has the MSU machine rolling along pretty well.

When you consider he’s been to six consecutive bowl games and won at least eight regular season games four times, that’s something Mississippi State fans are not accustomed to. That kind of winning tradition will keep him at State as long as he wants to be here.

Even Mullen’s hardest critics – which I was one during the 2013 season – have to admit that his ability to vault MSU into a stratosphere which we’ve never been (#1 in the country) demonstrates that he can do great things here and may do it again under the right circumstances.

A more comfortable Coach Mullen

2016 has presented a different side of Mullen than we have seen before. A more comfortable Mullen. He has gray hair and sideburns now. He’s running in marathons.

Mullen has established himself in the SEC and in college football. In April, he was named to the NCAA oversight committee. He is the only head coach on the committee, which “enhances the development of the sport and makes recommendations related to regular season and postseason football” and tries to enhance the student athlete experience.

His wife, Megan Mullen, was a Mississippi delegate at the Republican National Convention in July. How committed are you to where you’re living if you’re willing to become involved in politics and become a delegate?

At this point, Dan Mullen is so entrenched at Mississippi State it would be hard for him to leave. It goes both ways – from him wanting to leave or MSU wanting him to leave. It’s probably not going to happen anytime soon. Talking heads can discuss all the rumors they want, but when you’ve built a program like MSU has and are well on your way to becoming a program legend (and are making a top 20 salary to boot) it’s too hard to leave all that behind.

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