Dan Mullen was widely regarded as one of the top young minds in college football when he arrived at Mississippi State, and he brought not only an impressive offensive resume and a list of NFL-developed quarterbacks but also an energy and passion for the college game. With 15 years of experience in the collegiate coaching ranks, Mullen was named the 32nd head football coach in the history of Mississippi State University on December 10, 2008.

From the moment of Mullen’s announcement, Mississippi State fans have been reenergized. Supporters have turned out in the form of capacity crowds at Mullen’s appearances around the Southeast and the Bulldog faithful set a new State of Mississippi record with more than 31,000 in attendance at the team’s 2009 Maroon-White Spring Game in April.

The excitement continued throughout Mullen’s first fall on campus, as MSU set school records for total home attendance, average home attendance and posted three of the school’s top four largest single-game crowds.

Improvement wasn’t limited to fan enthusiasm, as Mullen ignited the Bulldog offense despite facing the nation’s toughest schedule. State’s rushing attack, led by first-team all-Southeastern Conference selection Anthony Dixon, finished ninth nationally with a 227.6 rushing yard average per game. State averaged 371.9 yards of total offense per game, the eighth highest total in school history and the most since 2000.

Mullen’s first season concluded with a rousing 41-27 victory over MSU’s in-state rival, which brought the Golden Egg back to Starkville. He became the only the third Mississippi State coach to win his Egg Bowl debut since 1939, joining Allyn McKeen and Jackie Sherrill. The Bulldogs posted a 5-7 overall record in 2009, including three road victories.

During the previous four seasons as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Florida, Mullen molded a Heisman Trophy, Davey O’Brien and Maxwell Award winning quarterback, along with a Rimington Trophy finalist and a Biletnikoff Award semifinalist.

In 2008 alone, Mullen’s offensive attack ranked third nationally in scoring – averaging better than 45 points per game as the Gators scored at least 30 points in 12 of 13 games. The 587 points scored eclipsed the previous University of Florida mark, set in 1996.

Florida has rushed for a new-school record 41 touchdowns that season and UF’s 80 rushing touchdowns over the two seasons ranked second nationally  Overall, Florida’s rushing yardage of 2,987 this year ranks ninth nationally and is the third-highest total in school history.

Seven offensive players were recognized as All-Southeastern Conference selections following the season in which Florida claimed its second SEC Championship and a chance to play for its second national championship in three seasons.

The Gator offense ranked first in the SEC in scoring offense and total offense for a second-straight season in 2008, averaging 45.2 points and 442.4 yards per game. Under Mullen’s tutelage in 2007, UF averaged  42.5 points and 457.2 yards.

In 2007, Mullen directed the Gator offense to the third-highest point total ever by a UF unit and the top single-season marks for rushing touchdowns and third-down conversion percentage. Florida’s offense scored 75 touchdowns during the season most in the SEC.

Mullen orchestrated a UF attack that was the only one in the nation to have rushed for a touchdown and passed for a touchdown in every game during the season. He also helped UF score on 83 of 152 drives in 2007 for a league-best 54.6 percent, marking the best number since the stat was tracked by the SEC in 2000. Florida also averaged 7.0 yards per play last year, the fourth-best total in the nation and the Gators averaged 5.3 yards per rush, the second-best number in school history.

In 2007, he helped coach sophomore quarterback Tim Tebow into a Heisman Trophy, Maxwell and Davey O’Brien award winner, 78th Sullivan Award winner and AP first-team All- American among other honors.

He also tutored six offensive players to the All-SEC team: Tebow, Percy Harvin, Cornelius Ingram, Brandon James, Jim Tartt and Drew Miller.

Mullen played an integral role in Florida’s 2006 national championship, overseeing an offense that averaged 29.7 points and 396.1 yards per game. In the BCS National Championship Game, he engineered an attack that produced 41 points against a top-ranked Ohio State squad that was limiting opponents to less than 11 points per game on the year. Under Mullen’s tutelage, quarterback Chris Leak opened the contest by going 9-for-9 for 99 yards and a touchdown en route to earning Offensive MVP honors.

The 2006 Gator offense posted 76 plays of 20 yards or more, 19 of which went for touchdowns. Florida passed for 29 touchdowns in 2006, while Leak ranked among the national leaders with 23 scoring tosses. Tebow matched UF’s single-season record for rushing touchdowns by a quarterback with eight scores, and his 5.3 average yards per carry were second nationally among signal callers. Six different players averaged at least 5.0 yards per carry last season, including SEC Freshman of the Year Harvin.

In 2005, Chad Jackson played his way to Biletnikoff Award semifinalist status after matching the UF single-season record with 88 receptions, a figure that led the SEC and finished sixth nationally. Center Mike Degory was also named a finalist for the Rimington Trophy, given annually to the nation’s top center, during that campaign. Both earned first-team All-SEC honors under Mullen’s tutelage.

Mullen went to Florida from Utah with head coach Urban Meyer, with whom he had spent the past 10 seasons. While the quarterbacks coach at Utah, Mullen developed Alex Smith – the first overall selection in the 2005 NFL Draft – from a pocket passer into an efficient executer of the spread offense, making him one of the most versatile threats in college football. Smith took over the starting job three games into Mullen’s tenure, passing for 2,247 yards and running for 452 to finish second in the Mountain West Conference in total offense in 2003.

The 2004 campaign saw Smith earn National Player of the Year honors from The Sporting News and Sports Illustrated, while also becoming Utah’s first-ever Heisman Trophy finalist and garnering final consideration for the Davey O’Brien and Walter Camp National Player of the Year Awards. Smith passed for 2,952 yards and 32 touchdowns and ran for 631 yards and 10 scores on the year, ranking second in the nation with a 176.5 efficiency rating and leading the Utes to a perfect 12-0 season and a Fiesta Bowl championship. As a team, Utah finished the 2004 season third in the nation in scoring offense (45.3) and total offense (499.8).

Prior to his stint at Utah, Mullen served as quarterbacks’ coach at Bowling Green for two seasons, putting up 6,627 yards of total offense and scoring 81 touchdowns during that span. In 2002, quarterback Josh Harris threw for 2,425 yards, ran for 737 yards and completed the campaign as the nation’s third-leading scorer.

Mullen spent the two years before his Bowling Green stint as a graduate assistant at Notre Dame, making a Fiesta Bowl appearance, and assisted with Syracuse’s 1998 BIG EAST championship and Orange Bowl run.

A two-year starter at tight end for Ursinus College in Collegeville, Pa., Mullen earned first-team All-Centennial Conference honors as a senior. He is married to the former Megan West, and the couple has a one-year-old son, Canon.

Coaching Career
- 1994-95: Wagner (Wide Receivers)
- 1996-97: Columbia (Wide Receivers)
- 1998: Syracuse (Graduate Assistant, Offense)
- 1999-00: Notre Dame (Graduate Assistant, Offense)
- 2001-02: Bowling Green (Quarterbacks)
- 2003-04: Utah (Quarterbacks)
- 2005-08: Florida (Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks)
- 2009-present: Mississippi State (Head Coach)
 
Bowl Games as a Coach
- 1999: Orange
- 2001: Fiesta
- 2003: Liberty
- 2005: Fiesta
- 2006: Outback
- 2007: BCS National Championship Game
- 2008: Capital One
- 2009: BCS National Championship Game 

NFL Players
(Round Drafted)
WR Dallas Baker (7th) – Florida 2007 – Pittsburgh Steelers
OG Lance Butler (FA) – Florida 2006 – Cleveland Browns
WR Andre Caldwell (3rd) – Florida 2008 – Cincinnati Bengals
OT Randy Hand (FA) – Florida 2006 – New England Patriots
QB Josh Harris (6th) – Bowling Green 2004 – Baltimore Ravens
WR Chad Jackson (2nd) – Florida 2006 – New England Patriots
QB Omar Jacobs (5th) – Bowling Green 2006 – Pittsburgh Steelers
QB Chris Leak (FA) – Florida 2007 – Chicago Bears
C Drew Miller (FA) – Florida 2008 – Jacksonville Jaguars
QB Alex Smith (1st) – Utah 2005 – San Francisco 49ers
OT Tavares Washington (FA) – Florida 2006 – San Francisco 49ers
RB DeShawn Wynn (7th) – Florida 2007 – Green Bay Packers

Personal Information
Birthdate: April 27, 1972
Hometown: Manchester, N.H.
Education: 1994 – Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise and Sport Science from Ursinus College; 
                1996 – Master’s Degree in Education from Wagner College
Family: Married to the former Megan West

Children: Canon