With his name suddenly being tossed around in the NFL coaching rumor mill, Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen admits to having at least some interest in the chance to coach at the next level.
In a radio interview with WGFX-FM in Nashville on Tuesday morning, the head coach of the Bulldogs said he might entertain the idea should any NFL teams come calling.
“I think I would,” Mullen said in the interview when presented with the scenario, according to Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com. “I don’t know when a time would be,” he later said.
You might be asking why a coach who is coming off a 6-7 season, and the answer is simple. Take one look at the season Dallas Cowboys rookie quarterback Dak Prescott just had, and remember who was instrumental in his college development. It was Mullen, at Mississippi State. Because of a wildly successful rookie season by Prescott with the Cowboys, Mullen is now revered as a bit of a quarterback mastermind.
“I have not spoken to anybody in the NFL this year,” Mullen said.
Although Mullen says he has not received any calls from potential NFL suitors, he is also not specifically looking for an exit from Mississippi State. It has been reported Mullen is currently negotiating a new contract in Starkville, so any talk about Mullen even remotely thinking about leaving for the NFL may be nothing more than bargaining power in the negotiation process.
Never say never, of course.In the meantime, Mullen could very well be an interesting, if not surprising name to keep tabs on until every NFL job is filled.