Mullen’s post-spring speaking tour dates announced
- Thread starter BMF
- Start date
- Jun 11, 2014
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We went tonight. The guy seems to get it and fully embrace the expectations. Obviously we’ll see how it translates on the field bc he’s got A LOT of work to do. But he definitely seems to grasp the task at hand.
- Aug 12, 2014
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There wasnt any olympic shuffle board on tonight that sas couldnt miss?
We went tonight. The guy seems to get it and fully embrace the expectations. Obviously we’ll see how it translates on the field bc he’s got A LOT of work to do. But he definitely seems to grasp the task at hand.
- Jun 11, 2014
- 4,834
- 8,299
Founding Member
- Jun 13, 2014
- 12,702
- 22,997
Founding Member
My dad was in the National Senior Olympics for swimming. He won a bronze in the 50 free for his age group. I still have not been able to erase the sight of hundreds of men and women in their 70s, 80s and 90s in their Speedos. I'm scarred. Scarred, I tell ya'.
- Sep 8, 2014
- 25,449
- 59,476
My dad was in the National Senior Olympics for swimming. He won a bronze in the 50 free for his age group. I still have not been able to erase the sight of hundreds of men and women in their 70s, 80s and 90s in their Speedos. I'm scarred. Scarred, I tell ya'.
"It's like swimming through a flabby-armed spanking machine." - Kramer
- Jun 11, 2014
- 4,720
- 4,309
Founding Member
Mullen excited to be a Gator and you can tell. Big things in store for this football program to get back into prominence. Go Gators!!
- Sep 8, 2014
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Mullen breaks down two-phase operation for the UF program
Florida coach Dan Mullen outlined a two-phase process for getting the program back on track as an elite annual contender again.
https://florida.247sports.com/Bolt/...-phase-operation-for-the-UF-program-115663173
TAMPA -- Meeting with fans on the third stop of his pre-spring tour around the state on Tuesday night in Tampa, Florida coach Dan Mullen opened up about what he's in for in taking over the program.
A fan posited a question, asking the new head coach what his biggest challenge is. Mullen outlined a two-phase operation in progress.
"The team is talking about this season, OK? This season's team and getting this season's team ready to compete, getting this season's team ready to get on the field and go win," Mullen said. "And we expect to try to compete for a championship this year, I'll be honest with you. So that's Challenge 1 is getting this team up and running."
Before getting into the second phase, Mullen tossed the fans some red meat.
He's been expert so far at prodding the fans for as much fan support as he can get, and his spring speaking engagements have underscored how comfortable he is rubbing elbows with fans and getting them engaged in the program.
"Here's the exciting thing about this year's team: The guys are buying in," he said. "It looks like we have some talented guys on the roster. I see the excitement from all of you, so I can expect to have a full stadium and an energized fanbase and people going crazy and cheering and giving us that home-field advantage and giving us the ability to go compete for a championship."
So what's the second stage of the building process?
That's a more long-term outlook for the program. It comes with lofty goals and major moves to come.
"The next biggest challenge is the program as a whole, and that might take a couple years to get there," Mullen said. "And what I mean by the program as a whole is every single aspect of the program. Everybody in complete alignment from top to bottom: recruiting and how our academics are set up, how the accountability is set up, every single aspect, every part of our facilities, everybody knows exactly what they're doing."
Florida is already on track to help in a big way with part of that equation. The Gators have plans in place to build a new stand-alone football facility, dumping more than $100 million into a three-pronged project that will include the football facility, a new baseball stadium and renovations to the softball stadium.
With that in place, Mullen will have just about everything he needs from a physical standpoint to compete with the elite programs in college football.
He's also got to build the staffing infrastructure he wants too, though. Get everyone who might have worked with him at Mississippi State comfortable with the workflow of the operation at Florida.
Once all those things are in place, Mullen leaves no doubt about the standard he wants to be held to.
"That takes time for the program to develop," he said. "Because the program, even though I expect to compete for a championship with every individual team, I want a program that everyone expects the program to compete for national championships every single year."
Florida coach Dan Mullen outlined a two-phase process for getting the program back on track as an elite annual contender again.
https://florida.247sports.com/Bolt/...-phase-operation-for-the-UF-program-115663173
TAMPA -- Meeting with fans on the third stop of his pre-spring tour around the state on Tuesday night in Tampa, Florida coach Dan Mullen opened up about what he's in for in taking over the program.
A fan posited a question, asking the new head coach what his biggest challenge is. Mullen outlined a two-phase operation in progress.
"The team is talking about this season, OK? This season's team and getting this season's team ready to compete, getting this season's team ready to get on the field and go win," Mullen said. "And we expect to try to compete for a championship this year, I'll be honest with you. So that's Challenge 1 is getting this team up and running."
Before getting into the second phase, Mullen tossed the fans some red meat.
He's been expert so far at prodding the fans for as much fan support as he can get, and his spring speaking engagements have underscored how comfortable he is rubbing elbows with fans and getting them engaged in the program.
"Here's the exciting thing about this year's team: The guys are buying in," he said. "It looks like we have some talented guys on the roster. I see the excitement from all of you, so I can expect to have a full stadium and an energized fanbase and people going crazy and cheering and giving us that home-field advantage and giving us the ability to go compete for a championship."
So what's the second stage of the building process?
That's a more long-term outlook for the program. It comes with lofty goals and major moves to come.
"The next biggest challenge is the program as a whole, and that might take a couple years to get there," Mullen said. "And what I mean by the program as a whole is every single aspect of the program. Everybody in complete alignment from top to bottom: recruiting and how our academics are set up, how the accountability is set up, every single aspect, every part of our facilities, everybody knows exactly what they're doing."
Florida is already on track to help in a big way with part of that equation. The Gators have plans in place to build a new stand-alone football facility, dumping more than $100 million into a three-pronged project that will include the football facility, a new baseball stadium and renovations to the softball stadium.
With that in place, Mullen will have just about everything he needs from a physical standpoint to compete with the elite programs in college football.
He's also got to build the staffing infrastructure he wants too, though. Get everyone who might have worked with him at Mississippi State comfortable with the workflow of the operation at Florida.
Once all those things are in place, Mullen leaves no doubt about the standard he wants to be held to.
"That takes time for the program to develop," he said. "Because the program, even though I expect to compete for a championship with every individual team, I want a program that everyone expects the program to compete for national championships every single year."
- Sep 8, 2014
- 25,449
- 59,476
Fan lays alley-oop to Mullen with joke about McElwain's dog
Jim McElwain and Doug Nussmeier officially became punch lines for the Florida fans at Dan Mullen's speaking tour stop in Orlando on Wednesday night.
https://florida.247sports.com/Bolt/...n-with-joke-about-Jim-McElwains-dog-115679826
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Florida coach Dan Mullen has been a natural on the spring speaking trail, drawing rowdy responses from fans with his quick wit and good-natured humor.
But he might have hit his best line yet, courtesy of an alley-oop for the ages by a fan.
Near the end of Mullen's speech in Orlando on Wednesday night, a fan got to the microphone and had a two-part question for him.
"Hey coach, Welcome back to Florida. Quick questions for you. First one is 'do you have a dog named Claire-a-bell?'" the fan asked.
As fans began to laugh, Mullen responded somewhat incredulously.
"A dog? I have a dog named Heisman."
The room exploded with laughter, having a good time at former coach Jim McElwain's expense. McElwain, of course, won fans over with his confidence early on in his tenure when he said at his opening press conference that he believed he could win with his dog playing quarterback.
Of course, after three years of poor quarterback play, that turned into a running jibe at McElwain.
So naturally the ensuing question from the fan was even more pointed.
"All right. The next question is you can get into your playbook and this and that, just promise me on 2nd and 9 it won't be a running play."
As fans laughed again, Mullen smiled and answered.
"We'll have some fun in what we do," Mullen said. "Like you've seen me call plays. I Jedi mind-trick people. Right? Like I used to back in the day I'd have like, Tebow would run out and we'd run a quarterback play, then I'd run a quarterback run without him.
"I did have a great call in the 2006 SEC Championship Game. You probably don't remember. We're driving against Arkansas later in the game. (Tim) Tebow goes out and runs a play. I pull him out and it's 3rd down and 8. I run Chris Leak out there and call a quarterback draw and he just walks into the end zone. Because they're like 'this guy's not dumb enough to take Tebow out and put Chris in for a running play.'"
It's safe to say that Mullen has won the fans over early on. Of course, the results still have to show on the field on Saturdays, but it's hard to ask for more from the new Florida coach so far.
Jim McElwain and Doug Nussmeier officially became punch lines for the Florida fans at Dan Mullen's speaking tour stop in Orlando on Wednesday night.
https://florida.247sports.com/Bolt/...n-with-joke-about-Jim-McElwains-dog-115679826
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Florida coach Dan Mullen has been a natural on the spring speaking trail, drawing rowdy responses from fans with his quick wit and good-natured humor.
But he might have hit his best line yet, courtesy of an alley-oop for the ages by a fan.
Near the end of Mullen's speech in Orlando on Wednesday night, a fan got to the microphone and had a two-part question for him.
"Hey coach, Welcome back to Florida. Quick questions for you. First one is 'do you have a dog named Claire-a-bell?'" the fan asked.
As fans began to laugh, Mullen responded somewhat incredulously.
"A dog? I have a dog named Heisman."
The room exploded with laughter, having a good time at former coach Jim McElwain's expense. McElwain, of course, won fans over with his confidence early on in his tenure when he said at his opening press conference that he believed he could win with his dog playing quarterback.
Of course, after three years of poor quarterback play, that turned into a running jibe at McElwain.
So naturally the ensuing question from the fan was even more pointed.
"All right. The next question is you can get into your playbook and this and that, just promise me on 2nd and 9 it won't be a running play."
As fans laughed again, Mullen smiled and answered.
"We'll have some fun in what we do," Mullen said. "Like you've seen me call plays. I Jedi mind-trick people. Right? Like I used to back in the day I'd have like, Tebow would run out and we'd run a quarterback play, then I'd run a quarterback run without him.
"I did have a great call in the 2006 SEC Championship Game. You probably don't remember. We're driving against Arkansas later in the game. (Tim) Tebow goes out and runs a play. I pull him out and it's 3rd down and 8. I run Chris Leak out there and call a quarterback draw and he just walks into the end zone. Because they're like 'this guy's not dumb enough to take Tebow out and put Chris in for a running play.'"
It's safe to say that Mullen has won the fans over early on. Of course, the results still have to show on the field on Saturdays, but it's hard to ask for more from the new Florida coach so far.
- Sep 8, 2014
- 25,449
- 59,476
Mullen takes in Orlando Magic game:
New Florida coach Dan Mullen is making the most of his new job, traveling around the state and making plenty of public appearances.
On Wednesday night, he took in an Orlando Magic game, where he visited before the game with former Florida star Marreese Speights.
As you can see in the photo below, he presented the star forward with a Florida football jersey:
Speights won the 2007 national championship with the Gators, so he’s no stranger to winning titles in Gainesville.
Mullen has made the Florida fanbase very happy the past couple of months, and it seems excitement is building in Gainesville as the two-time champion returns to lead the program.
New Florida coach Dan Mullen is making the most of his new job, traveling around the state and making plenty of public appearances.
On Wednesday night, he took in an Orlando Magic game, where he visited before the game with former Florida star Marreese Speights.
As you can see in the photo below, he presented the star forward with a Florida football jersey:
Speights won the 2007 national championship with the Gators, so he’s no stranger to winning titles in Gainesville.
Mullen has made the Florida fanbase very happy the past couple of months, and it seems excitement is building in Gainesville as the two-time champion returns to lead the program.
- Sep 8, 2014
- 25,449
- 59,476
Florida coach Dan Mullen discusses state of Gators’ football facilities
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/...discusses-state-of-gators-football-facilities
But he did offer his assessment of Florida’s football facilities.
“We have some unbelievable facilities at the University of Florida. Some. So in some areas we’re way ahead,” he said. “Our academics building, we are way, way, way, way, way ahead. We have one of the great stadiums in all of college football. We’re way ahead. We have a brand new indoor facility, which is fantastic. Now the day-to-day football operations building, we are way, way, way, way behind. That’s just where it is.”
Florida announced a year ago that it had selected famed sports architecture firm HOK to design a new standalone football facility. If anything, McElwain deserves some credit for pushing the facilities issue, getting that indoor practice facility built soon after his arrival and getting the process moving on the new team complex.
But there remains no definitive timeline for when that project will commence or be concluded.
Mullen said he’s actually happy it’s not done yet so he can have some input on what the program needs from the complex.
“Here’s the great thing, and this is what I’m really excited about, is I’m glad personally that we didn’t throw one up. Because I’m here to make sure we get it built and we get it done the right way,” he said. “Because anytime when you deal with facilities, the most important thing we’re looking for in the operations building in football is how do we maximize performance in student-athletes, and that’s what it’s all about. How do we maximize their performance in everything that they do.
“So how you build it, it’s not about just having every bell and whistle possible. To me, we have an awful lot to sell to recruits, so it’s not about facilities when it comes to recruiting. Facilities, to me, are much more important in the development of our players on a daily basis, that we have everything in place to maximize their development. And right now our facility is not set — it’s functional, it works — but it’s not set to maximize our student-athletes and we need to get caught up. But we’re going to build facilities the right way that does maximize the performance and development of our student athletes.”
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/...discusses-state-of-gators-football-facilities
But he did offer his assessment of Florida’s football facilities.
“We have some unbelievable facilities at the University of Florida. Some. So in some areas we’re way ahead,” he said. “Our academics building, we are way, way, way, way, way ahead. We have one of the great stadiums in all of college football. We’re way ahead. We have a brand new indoor facility, which is fantastic. Now the day-to-day football operations building, we are way, way, way, way behind. That’s just where it is.”
Florida announced a year ago that it had selected famed sports architecture firm HOK to design a new standalone football facility. If anything, McElwain deserves some credit for pushing the facilities issue, getting that indoor practice facility built soon after his arrival and getting the process moving on the new team complex.
But there remains no definitive timeline for when that project will commence or be concluded.
Mullen said he’s actually happy it’s not done yet so he can have some input on what the program needs from the complex.
“Here’s the great thing, and this is what I’m really excited about, is I’m glad personally that we didn’t throw one up. Because I’m here to make sure we get it built and we get it done the right way,” he said. “Because anytime when you deal with facilities, the most important thing we’re looking for in the operations building in football is how do we maximize performance in student-athletes, and that’s what it’s all about. How do we maximize their performance in everything that they do.
“So how you build it, it’s not about just having every bell and whistle possible. To me, we have an awful lot to sell to recruits, so it’s not about facilities when it comes to recruiting. Facilities, to me, are much more important in the development of our players on a daily basis, that we have everything in place to maximize their development. And right now our facility is not set — it’s functional, it works — but it’s not set to maximize our student-athletes and we need to get caught up. But we’re going to build facilities the right way that does maximize the performance and development of our student athletes.”
- Sep 4, 2014
- 21,394
- 79,961
Some definite fluff in that last statement. But I appreciate the positives he highlighted while still addressing the needs. It seemed like the moment McElwain took over, it was strictly negative rhetoric about all the things UF needed to do to become a great destination. And then we wonder why kids either commented on the facilitie issues or just avoided UF all together. That made no sense to me and was extremely counterproductive. There's a time and place for blunt criticism of that stuff, and it's in your boss' office with the door closed--not from a podium with journalists hanging on your every word. We may have to play catch up to an extent in certain areas. But I'd rather hear the coach reiterating all the positives about UF rather than creating a built-in excuse for potential failures and/or selling kids on features that won't even be breaking ground until their Jr year.
Like DM or not, this is just another example of the disparity between an actual head coach, and a journeyman with a great white fetish who simply landed the title.
- Aug 12, 2014
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- 15,818
At least he didnt blast UF and talk about us like Troy or Montana State. Mac never and could never hilight the positives about UF and why kids should come here. Read any recruiting note during his tenure: he sold playing time and playing time only. All 3 damn classes. He had no idea UF was in Gainesville. I guarantee you he had to google map his route home at night. He made no effort to learn anything while here. I’m glad to see Mullen at least taking imense pride into being here, our tradition, and our standing in the football universe. It’s a sight for sore eyes
- Jun 9, 2014
- 19,752
- 27,649
Founding Member
I can't recall a UF coach showing up at a Gator Club gathering wearing coat and tie. I'm probably making too much of it, but that really impresses me as a guy who takes his job serious.
- Sep 8, 2014
- 25,449
- 59,476
Dan Mullen reiterates national title pledge, expects Gators to win every home game
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/...hampionship-pledge-gators-win-every-home-game
ORLANDO, Fla. — During Dan Mullen’s speaking event Wednesday night, a fan in the back of the venue took her turn at the microphone and asked the new Florida coach if he was going to take Gators football “to the promised land.”
Mullen got a kick out of the question and used the prompt as an opportunity to reiterate his bold pledge for the program.
“We’re going to win a national championship again, and unlike Moses, I hope I’m still alive when we get [there],” he said, drawing laughter and applause from the crowd of about 500 at the Cheyenne Saloon and Opera House.
Mullen has not been bashful about setting the bar high for his return to Gainesville.
If there has been an overarching message from his speaking appearances it’s that he intends to restore the football program to the heights at which he remembers it, when he was part of a staff that won national championships in 2006 and 2008 as Florida’s offensive coordinator. He has taken to calling it the “Gators standard.”
And if there has been a second, equally pronounced theme to his talks, it’s that he is calling on the fan base to do its part in that process.
“We will win a championship,” he said Tuesday night during his event in Tampa. “I can’t tell you when it’s going to be. Maybe it will be next year. If we have every seat filled of every game, including the spring game, maybe it will be next year. I can’t tell you that. We’re all in this together.
“That’s what it was when we won here before. It was that way. … Nobody wanted to come and play in The Swamp.”
To that end, Mullen has another bold pledge that he shared with the crowds this week.
“You will not win an SEC or national championship if you lose home games. Not in this league. Not in this league. You’ve got to win your home games. And I expect us to win all of our home games, every single one,” Mullen said Wednesday night.
“But we cannot do it if you all aren’t there. … If you all show up and there’s not an empty seat in the stadium and the place is rocking, we’re going to win.”
Mullen has indicated he plans to take an active role in boosting the game-day experience. He’s said the Gators will honor the program’s long-standing traditions, but they also will create some new ones, which he has yet to specify.
He’s said the team will have a grand entrance, because he likes the pageantry of college football. But as much as anything he wants The Swamp to be intimidating again.
Dan Mullen speaks at the Tampa Yacht and Country Club on Tuesday night. (Ryan Young/SEC Country)
He joked that he once tried to research the most intimidating stadiums in the world and ended up reading about a soccer stadium in Turkey.
“They have like flares and they shoot flares at the other team on the field. There’s fire all around the stadium. The AD was like, ‘Nah, can’t do that. There’s no way the commissioner is going to sign off on our student body shooting fireworks at the other team.’
‘But it’s the most intimidating stadium in the world.’ ‘It still doesn’t matter.’ But we’re going to have a lot of cool stuff when we come out in the entrance,” he said.
Florida went just 3-3 at home last season, though the Gators were 11-1 at home in former coach Jim McElwain’s first two seasons.
During Mullen’s four seasons as Florida’s offensive coordinator from 2005-08, the Gators went 25-2 in The Swamp.
“You all know what that sign says in the locker room that the players hit right before they take the field, right? It says, ‘The Swamp — only Gators get out alive.’ And when opposing teams come in, that’s what they see. I’m going to tell you, I need every single one of you there making it that environment,” he said.
Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin recalled in December that Mullen had taken the same approach when he was hired at Mississippi State leading into the 2009 season, and sure enough he managed to pack the stadium (54,232 announced attendance) for the season opener against a Jackson State team that wouldn’t normally produce that kind of crowd in Starkville, Miss.
“He’s outstanding with the fan-engagement piece. And that’s genuine. He really likes that stuff. Some guys don’t like it. He really likes it. … He knows how important that is,” Stricklin told SEC Country.
And that’s why Mullen wrapped up an exhausting National Signing Day last month and headed straight over to the team’s indoor practice facility to spend an hour talking with fans.
That’s why he hit the road this week to Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando on consecutive nights, talking and taking questions for more than an hour at each stop.
Dan Mullen speaks at EverBank Field in Jacksonville on Monday night. (Ryan Young/SEC Country)
That’s why Mullen says he plans to talk to student groups on campus about boosting their commitment on Saturdays.
“Once spring practice starts, I’m going to try to go around to different student groups and organizations, go have lunch, go over to the fraternity houses and, more importantly, go to the sorority houses. Listen, if I want all the guys to show up, if I get the girls to show up — ‘Hey, all the sororities are going to the spring game.’ Well, then that answers the fraternity question,” Mullen joked Wednesday night.
“… Every one of the fans in our stadium are going to take the students’ lead. If the students are jumping up and down, having fun, going crazy, so is everybody else. If the students don’t, they’re not. So we’ve got to do a great job of cultivating and teaching the students how, one, we need them there and, two, how we need them to act during the course of the game.”
Mullen said he wants Saturdays in Gainesville to be some combination of a state fair, a Broadway show, a rock concert and a football game where there is something going on for everybody, and there is a buzz throughout the town for the Gators.
“Game day in Gainesville should be an event,” he said. “I hope we have, what do we have, 88,000 people in The Swamp, but there’s 15-20,000 people that don’t even come in that are outside that don’t even have tickets — they just want to be there for the event of what Gainesville is on Saturdays in the fall. It’s a must-attend event to be in Gainesville on a Saturday in the fall.”
That’s the vision. Mullen admitted it could take some time to get all facets of the program to peak levels, working in unison to fulfill that vision.
But he’s a confident guy, and he knows what he was brought here to do. So, no, he’s not going to shy away from setting the bar sky high from the beginning.
“I embrace the expectations that are in this program. I embrace the expectations that our fan base and the Gator Nation and everybody in the state of Florida puts on us. I love those, and it’s a shame, because not everybody does that,” he said. “But I embrace those expectations and I embrace what it’s about. If you don’t embrace the expectations, you can’t expect to win. Not everybody wins, either. You can’t have fear in what you’re doing.”
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/...hampionship-pledge-gators-win-every-home-game
ORLANDO, Fla. — During Dan Mullen’s speaking event Wednesday night, a fan in the back of the venue took her turn at the microphone and asked the new Florida coach if he was going to take Gators football “to the promised land.”
Mullen got a kick out of the question and used the prompt as an opportunity to reiterate his bold pledge for the program.
“We’re going to win a national championship again, and unlike Moses, I hope I’m still alive when we get [there],” he said, drawing laughter and applause from the crowd of about 500 at the Cheyenne Saloon and Opera House.
Mullen has not been bashful about setting the bar high for his return to Gainesville.
If there has been an overarching message from his speaking appearances it’s that he intends to restore the football program to the heights at which he remembers it, when he was part of a staff that won national championships in 2006 and 2008 as Florida’s offensive coordinator. He has taken to calling it the “Gators standard.”
And if there has been a second, equally pronounced theme to his talks, it’s that he is calling on the fan base to do its part in that process.
“We will win a championship,” he said Tuesday night during his event in Tampa. “I can’t tell you when it’s going to be. Maybe it will be next year. If we have every seat filled of every game, including the spring game, maybe it will be next year. I can’t tell you that. We’re all in this together.
“That’s what it was when we won here before. It was that way. … Nobody wanted to come and play in The Swamp.”
To that end, Mullen has another bold pledge that he shared with the crowds this week.
“You will not win an SEC or national championship if you lose home games. Not in this league. Not in this league. You’ve got to win your home games. And I expect us to win all of our home games, every single one,” Mullen said Wednesday night.
“But we cannot do it if you all aren’t there. … If you all show up and there’s not an empty seat in the stadium and the place is rocking, we’re going to win.”
Mullen has indicated he plans to take an active role in boosting the game-day experience. He’s said the Gators will honor the program’s long-standing traditions, but they also will create some new ones, which he has yet to specify.
He’s said the team will have a grand entrance, because he likes the pageantry of college football. But as much as anything he wants The Swamp to be intimidating again.
Dan Mullen speaks at the Tampa Yacht and Country Club on Tuesday night. (Ryan Young/SEC Country)
He joked that he once tried to research the most intimidating stadiums in the world and ended up reading about a soccer stadium in Turkey.
“They have like flares and they shoot flares at the other team on the field. There’s fire all around the stadium. The AD was like, ‘Nah, can’t do that. There’s no way the commissioner is going to sign off on our student body shooting fireworks at the other team.’
‘But it’s the most intimidating stadium in the world.’ ‘It still doesn’t matter.’ But we’re going to have a lot of cool stuff when we come out in the entrance,” he said.
Florida went just 3-3 at home last season, though the Gators were 11-1 at home in former coach Jim McElwain’s first two seasons.
During Mullen’s four seasons as Florida’s offensive coordinator from 2005-08, the Gators went 25-2 in The Swamp.
“You all know what that sign says in the locker room that the players hit right before they take the field, right? It says, ‘The Swamp — only Gators get out alive.’ And when opposing teams come in, that’s what they see. I’m going to tell you, I need every single one of you there making it that environment,” he said.
Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin recalled in December that Mullen had taken the same approach when he was hired at Mississippi State leading into the 2009 season, and sure enough he managed to pack the stadium (54,232 announced attendance) for the season opener against a Jackson State team that wouldn’t normally produce that kind of crowd in Starkville, Miss.
“He’s outstanding with the fan-engagement piece. And that’s genuine. He really likes that stuff. Some guys don’t like it. He really likes it. … He knows how important that is,” Stricklin told SEC Country.
And that’s why Mullen wrapped up an exhausting National Signing Day last month and headed straight over to the team’s indoor practice facility to spend an hour talking with fans.
That’s why he hit the road this week to Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando on consecutive nights, talking and taking questions for more than an hour at each stop.
Dan Mullen speaks at EverBank Field in Jacksonville on Monday night. (Ryan Young/SEC Country)
That’s why Mullen says he plans to talk to student groups on campus about boosting their commitment on Saturdays.
“Once spring practice starts, I’m going to try to go around to different student groups and organizations, go have lunch, go over to the fraternity houses and, more importantly, go to the sorority houses. Listen, if I want all the guys to show up, if I get the girls to show up — ‘Hey, all the sororities are going to the spring game.’ Well, then that answers the fraternity question,” Mullen joked Wednesday night.
“… Every one of the fans in our stadium are going to take the students’ lead. If the students are jumping up and down, having fun, going crazy, so is everybody else. If the students don’t, they’re not. So we’ve got to do a great job of cultivating and teaching the students how, one, we need them there and, two, how we need them to act during the course of the game.”
Mullen said he wants Saturdays in Gainesville to be some combination of a state fair, a Broadway show, a rock concert and a football game where there is something going on for everybody, and there is a buzz throughout the town for the Gators.
“Game day in Gainesville should be an event,” he said. “I hope we have, what do we have, 88,000 people in The Swamp, but there’s 15-20,000 people that don’t even come in that are outside that don’t even have tickets — they just want to be there for the event of what Gainesville is on Saturdays in the fall. It’s a must-attend event to be in Gainesville on a Saturday in the fall.”
That’s the vision. Mullen admitted it could take some time to get all facets of the program to peak levels, working in unison to fulfill that vision.
But he’s a confident guy, and he knows what he was brought here to do. So, no, he’s not going to shy away from setting the bar sky high from the beginning.
“I embrace the expectations that are in this program. I embrace the expectations that our fan base and the Gator Nation and everybody in the state of Florida puts on us. I love those, and it’s a shame, because not everybody does that,” he said. “But I embrace those expectations and I embrace what it’s about. If you don’t embrace the expectations, you can’t expect to win. Not everybody wins, either. You can’t have fear in what you’re doing.”
- Sep 8, 2014
- 25,449
- 59,476
Dan Mullen schedules speaking event, Q+A for Florida students
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/dan-mullen-schedules-speaking-event-qa-florida-students
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Dan Mullen’s pre-spring speaking tour wrapped up Wednesday night, but Florida’s football coach already has another public appearance on the books.
Mullen will speak to students at the University Auditorium on March 20 in an event hosted by ACCENT Speakers Bureau.
As he did in his speaking events over the last month in Gainesville, Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando, Mullen will hold an open question-and-answer session.
Students can pick up a maximum of two free tickets from the ACCENT office on the third floor of the Reitz Union on March 19 between noon and 5 p.m.
If any tickets remain, they will be made available to the pubic at the University Auditorium box office on noon on the day of the event.
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/dan-mullen-schedules-speaking-event-qa-florida-students
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Dan Mullen’s pre-spring speaking tour wrapped up Wednesday night, but Florida’s football coach already has another public appearance on the books.
Mullen will speak to students at the University Auditorium on March 20 in an event hosted by ACCENT Speakers Bureau.
As he did in his speaking events over the last month in Gainesville, Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando, Mullen will hold an open question-and-answer session.
Students can pick up a maximum of two free tickets from the ACCENT office on the third floor of the Reitz Union on March 19 between noon and 5 p.m.
If any tickets remain, they will be made available to the pubic at the University Auditorium box office on noon on the day of the event.
- Jun 10, 2014
- 20,178
- 41,471
Founding Member
He’s doing about everything you could ask at this point in time. Don’t know about the rest of you, but he’s raised my interest. I’m excited to see what he can accomplish with the program.Dan Mullen reiterates national title pledge, expects Gators to win every home game
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/...hampionship-pledge-gators-win-every-home-game
ORLANDO, Fla. — During Dan Mullen’s speaking event Wednesday night, a fan in the back of the venue took her turn at the microphone and asked the new Florida coach if he was going to take Gators football “to the promised land.”
Mullen got a kick out of the question and used the prompt as an opportunity to reiterate his bold pledge for the program.
“We’re going to win a national championship again, and unlike Moses, I hope I’m still alive when we get [there],” he said, drawing laughter and applause from the crowd of about 500 at the Cheyenne Saloon and Opera House.
Mullen has not been bashful about setting the bar high for his return to Gainesville.
If there has been an overarching message from his speaking appearances it’s that he intends to restore the football program to the heights at which he remembers it, when he was part of a staff that won national championships in 2006 and 2008 as Florida’s offensive coordinator. He has taken to calling it the “Gators standard.”
And if there has been a second, equally pronounced theme to his talks, it’s that he is calling on the fan base to do its part in that process.
“We will win a championship,” he said Tuesday night during his event in Tampa. “I can’t tell you when it’s going to be. Maybe it will be next year. If we have every seat filled of every game, including the spring game, maybe it will be next year. I can’t tell you that. We’re all in this together.
“That’s what it was when we won here before. It was that way. … Nobody wanted to come and play in The Swamp.”
To that end, Mullen has another bold pledge that he shared with the crowds this week.
“You will not win an SEC or national championship if you lose home games. Not in this league. Not in this league. You’ve got to win your home games. And I expect us to win all of our home games, every single one,” Mullen said Wednesday night.
“But we cannot do it if you all aren’t there. … If you all show up and there’s not an empty seat in the stadium and the place is rocking, we’re going to win.”
Mullen has indicated he plans to take an active role in boosting the game-day experience. He’s said the Gators will honor the program’s long-standing traditions, but they also will create some new ones, which he has yet to specify.
He’s said the team will have a grand entrance, because he likes the pageantry of college football. But as much as anything he wants The Swamp to be intimidating again.
Dan Mullen speaks at the Tampa Yacht and Country Club on Tuesday night. (Ryan Young/SEC Country)
He joked that he once tried to research the most intimidating stadiums in the world and ended up reading about a soccer stadium in Turkey.
“They have like flares and they shoot flares at the other team on the field. There’s fire all around the stadium. The AD was like, ‘Nah, can’t do that. There’s no way the commissioner is going to sign off on our student body shooting fireworks at the other team.’
‘But it’s the most intimidating stadium in the world.’ ‘It still doesn’t matter.’ But we’re going to have a lot of cool stuff when we come out in the entrance,” he said.
Florida went just 3-3 at home last season, though the Gators were 11-1 at home in former coach Jim McElwain’s first two seasons.
During Mullen’s four seasons as Florida’s offensive coordinator from 2005-08, the Gators went 25-2 in The Swamp.
“You all know what that sign says in the locker room that the players hit right before they take the field, right? It says, ‘The Swamp — only Gators get out alive.’ And when opposing teams come in, that’s what they see. I’m going to tell you, I need every single one of you there making it that environment,” he said.
Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin recalled in December that Mullen had taken the same approach when he was hired at Mississippi State leading into the 2009 season, and sure enough he managed to pack the stadium (54,232 announced attendance) for the season opener against a Jackson State team that wouldn’t normally produce that kind of crowd in Starkville, Miss.
“He’s outstanding with the fan-engagement piece. And that’s genuine. He really likes that stuff. Some guys don’t like it. He really likes it. … He knows how important that is,” Stricklin told SEC Country.
And that’s why Mullen wrapped up an exhausting National Signing Day last month and headed straight over to the team’s indoor practice facility to spend an hour talking with fans.
That’s why he hit the road this week to Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando on consecutive nights, talking and taking questions for more than an hour at each stop.
Dan Mullen speaks at EverBank Field in Jacksonville on Monday night. (Ryan Young/SEC Country)
That’s why Mullen says he plans to talk to student groups on campus about boosting their commitment on Saturdays.
“Once spring practice starts, I’m going to try to go around to different student groups and organizations, go have lunch, go over to the fraternity houses and, more importantly, go to the sorority houses. Listen, if I want all the guys to show up, if I get the girls to show up — ‘Hey, all the sororities are going to the spring game.’ Well, then that answers the fraternity question,” Mullen joked Wednesday night.
“… Every one of the fans in our stadium are going to take the students’ lead. If the students are jumping up and down, having fun, going crazy, so is everybody else. If the students don’t, they’re not. So we’ve got to do a great job of cultivating and teaching the students how, one, we need them there and, two, how we need them to act during the course of the game.”
Mullen said he wants Saturdays in Gainesville to be some combination of a state fair, a Broadway show, a rock concert and a football game where there is something going on for everybody, and there is a buzz throughout the town for the Gators.
“Game day in Gainesville should be an event,” he said. “I hope we have, what do we have, 88,000 people in The Swamp, but there’s 15-20,000 people that don’t even come in that are outside that don’t even have tickets — they just want to be there for the event of what Gainesville is on Saturdays in the fall. It’s a must-attend event to be in Gainesville on a Saturday in the fall.”
That’s the vision. Mullen admitted it could take some time to get all facets of the program to peak levels, working in unison to fulfill that vision.
But he’s a confident guy, and he knows what he was brought here to do. So, no, he’s not going to shy away from setting the bar sky high from the beginning.
“I embrace the expectations that are in this program. I embrace the expectations that our fan base and the Gator Nation and everybody in the state of Florida puts on us. I love those, and it’s a shame, because not everybody does that,” he said. “But I embrace those expectations and I embrace what it’s about. If you don’t embrace the expectations, you can’t expect to win. Not everybody wins, either. You can’t have fear in what you’re doing.”
- Sep 4, 2014
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- Nov 22, 2015
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