Mullen is at a crossroads right now. He caught lightning in a bottle with Trask but even that wasn't quite enough to get him to the next level. If he takes a long look in the mirror over the next few weeks and sees all of the things holding the team back from reaching that next level, he could start building a much more solid program. That starts with gutting the defensive staff and hiring top name people to replace them. Someone like Kevin Steele or Derek Mason could build back the team a lot better. He needs people who can recruit and he needs more staff for QC and game prep. I think he's had enough success and earned enough leverage with Stricklin to get that stuff if he pushed.
Is he going to do that? I'm not sure. The Mullen who stepped off the plane wouldn't, but I think he's learning more than we give him credit for here. Hires like Tim Brewster show he sees the need for better recruiting, at least. His willingness to open it up on offense at the beginning of the season is another sign, though the regression is worrying.
I still think Mullen can be the guy if he's willing to make changes, and I don't think we could've done better at the time we hired him. A lot of it is going to come down to this off-season, though, and if Grantham is still on the sideline at UF next year I'll be convinced that Dan isn't the guy.