Dan Mullen breezed into the Starkville Country Club 15 minutes late for his speaking engagement at the Starkville Rotary Club.
He had just returned to town from New Hampshire, where he spent a few days “back home,” noting that it was “really, really cold” and that the people talked so fast he could barely understand a word they were saying.
Suffice to say, after six years in Starkville, the Bulldogs coach has been converted.
Mullen spoke easily and enthusiastically to an overflow crowd of more than 100 Monday, brimming with the kind of confidence that comes with success.
And who could not be impressed with what Mullen and the Bulldogs achieved in 2014, a season of “firsts” for a program and a fan base that has well-acquainted with “managing expectations.”
A week into a contract extension that will pay him $4.275 million over each of the next four years, Mullen is the toast of the town and rightfully so.
Ranked No. 1 in the nation for a five-week stretch, the Bulldogs did not enter into the “Promised Land” of college football in 2014, but they, like Moses, climbed high enough to get a glimpse of it.
While the 2014 didn’t result in that ultimate goal — a national championship — Mullen has already achieved what few thought possible.
At age 42 and in his first head coaching job, he is already the third winningest coach in school history, with only one losing season, a 5-7 record in his first year. Since then, the Bulldogs have gone to five straight bowl games, including this year’s “New Year’s Six” appearance in the Orange Bowl. And while the Bulldogs could not sustain their remarkable success through the season’s end – MSU lost three of its final four games to finish 10-3, he has redefined the idea of success in Starkville.
It diminished nothing to note that the only thing more difficult than getting so high up the mountain is staying there, however.
In two weeks, MSU will begin spring training in preparation for the 2015 season, which means a clean slate. Clean slates are great things for those who have fallen short, of course. But when you’ve had success, a clean slate means saying goodbye to all that has been achieved and staring into the cold reality of what lies ahead.
Mullen, confident as he is, recognizes as much. While the Bulldogs return a lot of key players — including bona fide Heisman Trophy candidate Dak Prescott at quarterback – there are key losses. Past success is not always and indicator of what lies ahead, of course, a fact Mullen understands as much as anyone.
“The first predictions came out this week and we’re No. 22,” Mullen told the Rotarians. “The bad news is that we’re No. 7 in the SEC West. How crazy is that?”
How crazy? Insanely crazy.
The Bulldogs finished the 2014 season ranked No. 11 in the nation. They go into spring practice picked to finish last in their division. You can be pretty good in the SEC and have little to show for it.
Dan Mullen is the toast of the town today, but 12 months hence, there is no assurance that his star will shine so brightly as it does now.
In the meantime, it is important to note Mullen has already achieved what no other coach has attained at MSU.
For better or worse, expectations have never been higher.
But it’s an awful lot of fun to dream big. That something MSU fans have rarely allowed themselves to do. They can thank Dan Mullen for that, no matter what lies ahead.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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