Dan Mullen was in a position to prevent all of this....

[5049]

And choked as usual. We should have been watching Georgia beat Ohio State or Clemson last night. But yet again, Dan Mullen will be remembered for what he didn't do at MSU, rather than what he did do.

[Commercecomet24]

I thought about that last night also. If danny boy coached the 4th quarter like he did the first 3 bama wouldn't have even been in the playoffs. Of course Kirby coached the 4th quarter last night like danny boy did.

[5049]

I thought about that last night also. If danny boy coached the 4th quarter like he did the first 3 bama wouldn't have even been in the playoffs. Of course Kirby coached the 4th quarter last night like danny boy did.
2009 LSU goal line loss, didn't make a bowl
2010 didn't sign Cam then lost a heartbreaker to him
2011 Auburn goal line loss
2012 Egg Bowl loss reignited their program
2014 loss to Bama's worst team of Saban's tenure since 2007 killed our season
2015 no one specific thing, just a waste of Dak's senior year culminated in egg beatdown at home and terrible recruiting
2017 Bama loss, stupid coaching, allowed the most terrible fanbase ever 70 miles from us to continue their damned dynasty
2017 Egg Bowl loss, though I can't blame it all on him, it's just one more thing in a long list

Some more particularly damaging things:
Total meltdown on NSD 2011
2012 we get to be the first bowl win ever for Northwestern yay
2016 shorts and South Alabama

He never won when something major was on the line. The only things that come close:
2013 bowl eligibility by winning 2 OT games
2014 being #1 though it ultimately meant nothing as we got no trophies
bowl streak

Only good thing I can say about him right now is that he left before he burned the whole thing to the ground like Jackie, and erased us as the coaching and quarterback graveyard. For that I'm thankful.

But good riddance to that dude

[BB30]

2009 LSU goal line loss, didn't make a bowl
2010 didn't sign Cam then lost a heartbreaker to him
2011 Auburn goal line loss
2012 Egg Bowl loss reignited their program
2014 loss to Bama's worst team of Saban's tenure since 2007 killed our season
2015 no one specific thing, just a waste of Dak's senior year culminated in egg beatdown at home and terrible recruiting
2017 Bama loss, stupid coaching, allowed the most terrible fanbase ever 70 miles from us to continue their damned dynasty
2017 Egg Bowl loss, though I can't blame it all on him, it's just one more thing in a long list

Some more particularly damaging things:
Total meltdown on NSD 2011
2012 we get to be the first bowl win ever for Northwestern yay
2016 shorts and South Alabama

He never won when something major was on the line. The only things that come close:
2013 bowl eligibility by winning 2 OT games
2014 being #1 though it ultimately meant nothing as we got no trophies
bowl streak

Only good thing I can say about him right now is that he left before he burned the whole thing to the ground like Jackie, and erased us as the coaching and quarterback graveyard. For that I'm thankful.

But good riddance to that dude

And those few good things "not running us into the ground" and "erasing us as the coaching and QB graveyard" are a pretty dang big deal. No other coach in 100+ years of football has been able to do the latter for sure when it comes to QBs.

That's our ticket to success having a versatile QB that is a dawg out there and can take over a game on his own.

[TrapGame]

2009 LSU goal line loss, didn't make a bowl
2010 didn't sign Cam then lost a heartbreaker to him
2011 Auburn goal line loss
2012 Egg Bowl loss reignited their program
2014 loss to Bama's worst team of Saban's tenure since 2007 killed our season
2015 no one specific thing, just a waste of Dak's senior year culminated in egg beatdown at home and terrible recruiting
2017 Bama loss, stupid coaching, allowed the most terrible fanbase ever 70 miles from us to continue their damned dynasty
2017 Egg Bowl loss, though I can't blame it all on him, it's just one more thing in a long list

Some more particularly damaging things:
Total meltdown on NSD 2011
2012 we get to be the first bowl win ever for Northwestern yay
2016 shorts and South Alabama


Line some of those years up with job searches and it gets more pathetic. Funny how we beat om in the years he wasn't whoring himself out or Nutt was the coach.

[AROB44]

Damn....it's a real shame we had to endure Mullen's tenure !!! ********************

[Liverpooldawg]

I thought about that last night also. If danny boy coached the 4th quarter like he did the first 3 bama wouldn't have even been in the playoffs. Of course Kirby coached the 4th quarter last night like danny boy did.

That 4th quarter against Saban was kind of a common denominator wasn’t it?

[Liverpooldawg]

Give it a rest guys. Mullen had more better seasons than any coach at MSU since the 40’s. Same goes for less bad seasons. The guy did a lot for MSU and I will always be greatful. I will also never appear ungrateful.

[5049]

That's our ticket to success having a versatile QB that is a dawg out there and can take over a game on his own.
Let's look at that:

Here's our 2-loss seasons in recent memory:

1976: 9-2 (wasn't this a Rocky Felker team)
1980: 9-2 with a bowl loss (John Bond and good offense)
1999: 9-2 with a bowl win (great defense)
2014: 10-2 with a bowl loss (Dak Prescott and good offense)

We can go further and add some of our most talented teams in there:

2000: 8-4 with a bowl win (great defense)
2010: 8-4 with a bowl win (great defense)
2018: TBD (most complete team I can remember)

So what is the formula? When I look at those 1999, 2000, and 2010 teams, I see a ton of JUCOs mixed with a solid group of high school players and no real holes on defense. Obviously the hole was quarterback on those teams. Most people say we got lucky in 1999 with an easy schedule. So seems the good money is on an offensive system with a solid dual threat quarterback, mixed with a defense built on home grown talent, whether it's high school or JUCO. Imagine if Dak Muffins had realized this sooner, perhaps it wouldn't have taken him 10 years to build the complete team we've been waiting on for a long time.

[Dawgface]

Damn....it's a real shame we had to endure Mullen's tenure !!! ********************

Ain't that the truth. He sucked so bad we have to refer to him by a different name.**

[5049]

Give it a rest guys. Mullen had more better seasons than any coach at MSU since the 40?s. Same goes for less bad seasons. The guy did a lot for MSU and I will always be greatful. I will also never appear ungrateful.

This is not true. Take away the 12th game against FCS competition (read: gimme win) and he was no better than Jackie. Muffins missed his opportunity to be the best MSU coach ever, I outlined that in the OP.

[Commercecomet24]

That 4th quarter against Saban was kind of a common denominator wasn’t it?

Truth. Seems to be for every team that's close to bama in the 4th quarter.

[TrapGame]

After the last 3 yrs of Jackie and Croompacolypse we've forgotten real football and Merlin coaches us like an average coach should do and we think he's actually done something fantastic. Freeze ass raped him too many times for me to give him glowing praise. Yeah, he changed our program for the better but there are other coaches after Croom that could have done the same thing.

[sleepy dawg]

After the last 3 yrs of Jackie and Croompacolypse we've forgotten real football and Merlin coaches us like an average coach should do and we think he's actually done something fantastic. Freeze ass raped him too many times for me to give him glowing praise. Yeah, he changed our program for the better but there are other coaches after Croom that could have done the same thing.

But they didn't. Dan did.

[Tbonewannabe]

Truth. Seems to be for every team that's close to bama in the 4th quarter.

There seems to be a pucker factor that Saban somehow eliminates most of the time. The AU kick six and Clemson pick play are the rare times I remember Bama losing at the end. Bama for the most part seems to play loose when most tighten up. It could be just my perception of it but it is almost like we are trying not to lose and Bama just knows they are about to win.

[5049]

After the last 3 yrs of Jackie and Croompacolypse we've forgotten real football and Merlin coaches us like an average coach should do and we think he's actually done something fantastic. Freeze ass raped him too many times for me to give him glowing praise. Yeah, he changed our program for the better but there are other coaches after Croom that could have done the same thing.

You got it, brotha

[TrapGame]

But they didn't. Dan did.

I don't deny that. Dan was also his own worst enemy.

[MadDawg]

And choked as usual. We should have been watching Georgia beat Ohio State or Clemson last night. But yet again, Dak Muffins will be remembered for what he didn't do at MSU, rather than what he did do.

I can't wait until you guys tell us how much Moorhead sucks.

Oh wait. It will be Bo Lesshead. Or will it be Blow Moohead.

Will you guys go ahead and figure out the stupid nicknames for Moorhead now so we can start practicing?

[Commercecomet24]

There seems to be a pucker factor that Saban somehow eliminates most of the time. The AU kick six and Clemson pick play are the rare times I remember Bama losing at the end. Bama for the most part seems to play loose when most tighten up. It could be just my perception of it but it is almost like we are trying not to lose and Bama just knows they are about to win.

Yep. It seems like its always been that way with Bama, for as long as I can remember. Whether it was Bear, Stallings or Saban those coaches always seemed to be able to call on that bama mojo in the 4th quarter to pull things out.

[Tbonewannabe]

After the last 3 yrs of Jackie and Croompacolypse we've forgotten real football and Merlin coaches us like an average coach should do and we think he's actually done something fantastic. Freeze ass raped him too many times for me to give him glowing praise. Yeah, he changed our program for the better but there are other coaches after Croom that could have done the same thing.

I will give Mullen credit, he got us to a point of expecting bowls every year. There aren't a lot of programs in the SEC that consistently goes to bowls every year. It seems like the only time we beat a better team was when the bowl streak was on the line. Hopefully Moorhead will take the next step and actually compete for the West. It wouldn't have been a spot in Atlanta but laying a turd against UM in 2014 still pisses me off. It would at least be a share of the West title but Dan shoping his name and fighting with Collins were probably big factors in the team sleep walking in the Egg Bowl.

I appreciate Mullen but we also paid him a shit ton of money and he half assed recruiting and the end of some seasons. Did he do a good job? I would say yes but he also shouldn't be above reproach.

[Jack Lambert]

I thought about that last night also. If danny boy coached the 4th quarter like he did the first 3 bama wouldn't have even been in the playoffs. Of course Kirby coached the 4th quarter last night like danny boy did.

Well also if Smart didn't coach like Mullen in the 4th.

[Commercecomet24]

I will give Mullen credit, he got us to a point of expecting bowls every year. There aren't a lot of programs in the SEC that consistently goes to bowls every year. It seems like the only time we beat a better team was when the bowl streak was on the line. Hopefully Moorhead will take the next step and actually compete for the West. It wouldn't have been a spot in Atlanta but laying a turd against UM in 2014 still pisses me off. It would at least be a share of the West title but Dan shoping his name and fighting with Collins were probably big factors in the team sleep walking in the Egg Bowl.

I appreciate Mullen but we also paid him a shit ton of money and he half assed recruiting and the end of some seasons. Did he do a good job? I would say yes but he also shouldn't be above reproach.

Only 5 SEC Teams have been to Bowl Games every year since 2010. We are one of them. That's pretty impressive. That being said he left a wins on the table every year.

[TrapGame]

I can't wait until you guys tell us how much Moorhead sucks.

Moorhead is walking into a pretty damn nice program. Yes, Mullen built it despite his flaws. Moorhead will be gone in 5 yrs and it won't be because we fire him. He'll be in the NFL or HC at Penn State. They way he has put his staff together should clue everyone in on how serious he's taking this job. There is no country club.

[Tbonewannabe]

Moorhead is walking into a pretty damn nice program. Yes, Mullen built it despite his flaws. Moorhead will be gone in 5 yrs and it won't be because we fire him. He'll be in the NFL or HC at Penn State. They way he has put his staff together should clue everyone in on how serious he's taking this job. There is no country club.

Also Mullen kept getting a raise every year but bitched about how much he had to pay his assistants. Moorhead took a pay cut just to get the assistants he wanted. If Moorhead is gone in 5 years, I will thank him for bringing our first National Title and Heisman home.

[TrapGame]

I will give Mullen credit, he got us to a point of expecting bowls every year. There aren't a lot of programs in the SEC that consistently goes to bowls every year. It seems like the only time we beat a better team was when the bowl streak was on the line. Hopefully Moorhead will take the next step and actually compete for the West. It wouldn't have been a spot in Atlanta but laying a turd against UM in 2014 still pisses me off. It would at least be a share of the West title but Dan shoping his name and fighting with Collins were probably big factors in the team sleep walking in the Egg Bowl.

I appreciate Mullen but we also paid him a shit ton of money and he half assed recruiting and the end of some seasons. Did he do a good job? I would say yes but he also shouldn't be above reproach.

Exactly! Mullen did some really good things with the program but he half assed recruiting and put his ego over his players too many times.

[Commercecomet24]

I will give Mullen credit, he got us to a point of expecting bowls every year. There aren't a lot of programs in the SEC that consistently goes to bowls every year. It seems like the only time we beat a better team was when the bowl streak was on the line. Hopefully Moorhead will take the next step and actually compete for the West. It wouldn't have been a spot in Atlanta but laying a turd against UM in 2014 still pisses me off. It would at least be a share of the West title but Dan shoping his name and fighting with Collins were probably big factors in the team sleep walking in the Egg Bowl.

I appreciate Mullen but we also paid him a shit ton of money and he half assed recruiting and the end of some seasons. Did he do a good job? I would say yes but he also shouldn't be above reproach.

I think that's the mullen tenure in a nutshell. Great post!

[NCDawg]

2009 LSU goal line loss, didn't make a bowl
2010 didn't sign Cam then lost a heartbreaker to him
2011 Auburn goal line loss
2012 Egg Bowl loss reignited their program
2014 loss to Bama's worst team of Saban's tenure since 2007 killed our season
2015 no one specific thing, just a waste of Dak's senior year culminated in egg beatdown at home and terrible recruiting
2017 Bama loss, stupid coaching, allowed the most terrible fanbase ever 70 miles from us to continue their damned dynasty
2017 Egg Bowl loss, though I can't blame it all on him, it's just one more thing in a long list

Some more particularly damaging things:
Total meltdown on NSD 2011
2012 we get to be the first bowl win ever for Northwestern yay
2016 shorts and South Alabama

He never won when something major was on the line. The only things that come close:
2013 bowl eligibility by winning 2 OT games
2014 being #1 though it ultimately meant nothing as we got no trophies
bowl streak

Only good thing I can say about him right now is that he left before he burned the whole thing to the ground like Jackie, and erased us as the coaching and quarterback graveyard. For that I'm thankful.

But good riddance to that dude

Yeah, you can say that now, but if you had said anything detrimental about Mullen's coaching while he was here, numerous posters on this board would have blasted you.

[Maroonthirteen]

That 4th quarter against Saban was kind of a common denominator wasn?t it?

The common denominator is Alabama. 81, 91, 92, 94 and 99. All big games and all fourth quarter losses. 2012, 2014 and 2017 are par for the course.

[Liverpooldawg]

This is not true. Take away the 12th game against FCS competition (read: gimme win) and he was no better than Jackie. Muffins missed his opportunity to be the best MSU coach ever, I outlined that in the OP.

It is definitely true. Don?t let facts get in your way though.

[Liverpooldawg]

Only 5 SEC Teams have been to Bowl Games every year since 2010. We are one of them. That's pretty impressive. That being said he left a wins on the table every year.

Generally everybody leaves wins on the table. Good grief. Even Saban left one there this year, and last year.

[Commercecomet24]

Generally everybody leaves wins on the table. Good grief. Even Saban left one there this year, and last year.

Look I appreciate what he did but he pissed away the end of our seasons several times. Can be no debate on that

[AROB44]

Also Mullen kept getting a raise every year but bitched about how much he had to pay his assistants. Moorhead took a pay cut just to get the assistants he wanted. If Moorhead is gone in 5 years, I will thank him for bringing our first National Title and Heisman home.

Do you know that from first hand knowledge or was told by someone with "inside knowledge or connections"?

[JoseBrown]

Look I appreciate what he did but he pissed away the end of our seasons several times. Can be no debate on that

That’s true, and it took him quite a while to figure out he needed to hire some recruiters to help him get out of here.

[NCDawg]

That’s true, and it took him quite a while to figure out he needed to hire some recruiters to help him get out of here.

We were paying him so much that it was difficult for him to hired somewhere else with a comparable salary. His record didn't justify it.

[Todd4State]

The thing about Dan is he never was willing to compromise certain things to win. A lot of it is he thought that his way was the way to win- so I'm not saying it was intentional on his part at all. But he wasn't able to objectively assess things that were maybe his idea that didn't work out all that well and wasn't able to quickly adapt. That's why his ceiling is and always will be limited.

I gave him a pass pretty much for LSU and Houston in 2009 because he was a first year coach, and a pass for the Army AA debacle for pretty much the same reason. I wasn't happy about it and I made mention of it many times on message boards. That said, I was under the impression and hope that those were simply learning experiences for an inexperienced head coach and that things would change for the better because of it. By 2012 it was apparent to me that I was wrong in that assessment.

By the end of 2015 I think MSU outgrew Dan Mullen and his ceiling. He should have been forced to either take another job or stay and make sweeping changes to his offensive staff. Stricklin protected him enough to keep Keenum from booting him and then we were given the exuse of "we didn't want to change both the offensive and defensive staff at the same time so since Manny Diaz left we kept the offensive staff together."

I think as fans we deserve a coach that at the very least wants to be at MSU. We haven't really had that since Jackie. Croom talked about Alabama too much to make me believe that he was totally sold on us and Dan was looking every year.

Now things did get slightly better over time with Dan as far as recruiting and special teams coaching- but my guess is much of that was directed to him by the AD.

Dan Mullen basically used our poor history to get more time, money, and leeway than he should have. Thankfully Jackie showed that we could beat top 25 teams at a fairly consistent rate of about one a year in a more difficult era to win at MSU. Hopefully we can find a coach that can consistently beat the people we're supposed to like Dan but pull the occasional upset like Jackie. Not to mention place the proper emphasis on winning the Egg Bowl unlike Dan after 2011.

[Todd4State]

Yeah, you can say that now, but if you had said anything detrimental about Mullen's coaching while he was here, numerous posters on this board would have blasted you.

Tell me about it.

It's pretty funny how quickly many MSU fans across the Internet suddenly agreed with me and others that saw through Dan's BS as soon as Dan left. At least our fans are loyal to a fault I guess.**

I'm just glad I don't see MSU potentially getting rid of Dan being compared to Ole Miss firing David Cutcliffe anymore. Fortunately our coaching search went as smoothly as I expected too shooting down all of the "Oh yeah! Who would YOU hire that's better than Dan Mullen? Gruden? Dungy? They ain't coming to Mississippi State" posts.

We just had a coaching search where Alabama's DC was begging for our job and ultimately ended up being hired at Tennessee AFTER we made him our third choice. In the meantime we ended up with our first choice, hired a guy that appears to possibly be the football genius that Dan wished he was, will likely improve recruiting, and genuinely wants to be here. And the coaching search was praised by the media.

[Todd4State]

That’s true, and it took him quite a while to figure out he needed to hire some recruiters to help him get out of here.

And still only got rid of one of his Country Club members. I have to credit Todd Grantham for that more than Dan's recruiting. Peter Sirmon cost us a 9 win season at least and forced us to have Dan for another year.

[BuckyIsAB****]

Mullen is gone. He is the enemy. Shit on him

[Tbonewannabe]

Do you know that from first hand knowledge or was told by someone with "inside knowledge or connections"?

It was more reading between the lines so mostly bullshit like everything else on the internet. Lol