Dan Mullen is leaving Mississippi State to become Florida’s new head coach, ESPN reported.
The news will be a blow to Bulldog fans, who saw their fortunes rise during Mullen’s tenure. He was the second winningest coach in the school’s history with a 69-46 record, second only to Jackie Sherrill.
Mullen will replace Jim McElwain, who was fired last month after less than three seasons as Florida’s head coach.
Mullen was Urban Meyer’s offensive coordinator at Florida, coaching on two national championship teams in 2006 and 2008.
Additionally, Florida’s athletic director, Scott Stricklin, previously held the AD position and worked with Mullen at MSU from 2010-2016.
Although Mississippi State had hoped to extend Mullen’s contract, school president Mark Keenum wished him the best in a statement to the press.
“It’s a tribute to Dan and to MSU that he has drawn the interest of several premier football programs around the country,” Keenum said. “Dan’s tenure at MSU coincides with my own, and we’ve had a chance to do some special things together for our loyal fans and friends.”
In a statement of his own, Mullen said he and his wife are “very excited” about returning to Gainesville. “I have such great memories of the championships we won during our time here and have a love for Florida. We are happy to be coming back to such a supportive administration, staff, student body and fan base, which is the premier football program in the country. We will give relentless effort in everything that we do on and off the field. Our commitment will match the passion that the Gator Nation has for this program.”
In a separate statement, Stricklin said Mullen is “the best prepared candidate” for the job at Florida. “Coach Mullen is one of the best offensive minds in all of college football and has an unbelievable track record in tutoring successful quarterbacks. Coach Mullen will do a tremendous job in developing accountability and toughness through a well-coordinated strength and conditioning program. Dan will work closely with the coaching staff, academic advising staff and administrative team to give every student athlete he coaches the opportunity to grow and excel at a high level athletically, academically and socially.”
We will update this story as new information becomes available.
Rick Hynum is editor-in-chief of HottyToddy.com. Email him at rick.hynum@hottytoddy.com.
