Dan Mullen Plans on Being Mississippi State's Head Coach Next Season

As rumors continue to swirl about Dan Mullen's future, the Mississippi State head football coach addressed his status after Thursday's 31-28 loss to Mississippi. 

When asked if he will coach the Bulldogs next season, Mullen said he plans to, as Brett Hudson of the Commercial Dispatch relayed:

"As I said, I'm very, very happy here. I'm happy with what we've built, I have a great president (Mark Keenum) and great administration. You look at our fanbase and the program we've built, I think it's pretty special. I'm fortunate to be the head coach and (athletic director) John (Cohen) and Dr. Keenum have both told me they want me to continue to be the head coach here—before the game they did, we'll see what they say right now."

Mullen's name has been linked to the vacant Tennessee job. ESPN's Chris Low told Jayson Swain on Wednesday the 45-year-old is "the leader in the clubhouse" to be the Volunteers' next head coach. 

After a 0-6 start in SEC play, Tennessee fired Butch Jones on Nov. 12. and named Brady Hoke interim head coach for the rest of this season. 

Mississippi State hired Mullen as its head coach in December 2008. He has compiled a 69-46 record and helped the program climb to No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 during the 2014 season for the first time in school history.