Dan Mullen to...Mississippi State? The First Gator of Many, Unfortunately...

Pat Forde has reported that Dan Mullen, the offensive coordinator of the Florida Gators, has accepted the position as the new head coach of the Mississippi State Bulldogs. 

This is good news for the Bulldogs. They get a coach who is a good recruiter, has some great relationships in the Sunshine State with productive high schools, and has a proven offensive system in the SEC. If Mullen can assemble a good crew, he may have a chance in Starkville to at least make the program respectable if not a winner.

This may be disconcerting news for the Florida Gators, and I think it should be disconcerting news for Florida fans. Florida is preparing for the biggest game of the year. Florida's Heisman Trophy winning QB is debating whether or not to enter the NFL draft. Now is not the time for the distractions associated with a fragmenting coaching staff, and the unease about the future that accompanies the fracture.  

Three other Florida assistants, Charlie Strong, Steve Addazio, and Dan McCarney, are all likely candidates for other positions in the wide world of college football. Speculation will likely swirl for the next few weeks about each of these assistants and their future with the Gators. I suppose success will always bring these sorts of distractions.

As a Gator fan, I hope that this does not serve as any sort of distraction from the necessary preparation for a REALLY good Sooner team. As a professional, I congratulate these gentlemen on excelling at their jobs, and essentially being talked about for "promotions."  

It is debatable whether the HC job at Miss. State is a "better" job than the OC job at Florida; HC in the SEC is about as good as it gets, but when you look at what Mullen will have to work with vs. what he will have to work against, it looks like a very difficult task.

My only consolation in all of this is it looks as if Oklahoma is dealing with the very same distractions. OC Kevin Wilson and DC Brett Venables are apparently finalists for some pretty high profile HC positions themselves. 

For a good article that breaks down the stats of teams that lose a coordinator before a bowl game, click here.