GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Coach Dan Mullen is confident he can fix Florida football, but whether he gets the chance is undecided.
Mullen made his case Monday, two days after the Gators’ 70-52 win against FCS foe Samford felt more like a loss and the beginning of the end of his time in Gainesville.
“I’ve had a lot of success for 13 years as a head coach in this league,” Mullen said. “I’ve won a lot of football games, know how to win football games. I love being the head coach of the Gators. We’ve got great young guys that are willing to battle and fight no matter what the adversity is.
“I don’t know what else I have more than that.”
The Gators’ next two games could either bolster Mullen’s bid for a fifth season or complete a stunning turn of events culminating with his ouster.
Mullen will hitch his future to redshirt quarterback Emory Jones, coming off a record-setting performance featuring 550 total yards and seven touchdowns against Samford.
“I feel good about how I’m playing,” Jones said. “But there’s a lot of improvement to be made.”
The same is true of a program in decline.
One year ago, Florida (5-5, 2-5 SEC) sat No. 6 in the College Football Playoff rankings. A 37-34 loss Dec. 12 against LSU in the Swamp then began an unforeseeable free-fall featuring losses against eight of 10 Power 5 foes.
“This year hasn’t gone the way that we wanted it to go, unfortunately,” Mullen said. “You can point at a lot of different things of why that happened and different reasons with where we’re at.”
Where the Gators are headed is the pressing question.
Victories on Saturday at Missouri (5-5, 2-4) and Nov. 27 versus Florida State will do little to quell criticism of Mullen and calls for a new head coach. But two W’s might be enough for Florida athletics director Scott Stricklin to stick with what he knows.
Stricklin worked with Mullen from 2010-16 at Mississippi State and during the past four seasons at Florida.
“He and I do have a great working relationship and understanding of identifying issues, problems and what are the solutions to try to fix them,” Mullen said. “We’ve always worked very well together in looking at the big picture of things.”
The big picture depends on one’s perspective.
“Our narrative is we won the game,” Mullen said. “I was with the team this morning; the guys are fired up. We celebrated, had a great time in the locker room. We got a great week of practice ahead of us and guys are excited to play football again.
“That’s my narrative.”
Detractors highlight a lack of discipline leading to penalties and blown assignments, along with a talent gap because of substandard recruiting. Jones’ inconsistent play and the unpredictable use of explosive backup Anthony Richardson, who also has battled injuries, has led critics to even question Mullen’s quarterback development — long known as a “QB whisperer.”
While Richardson is not a finished product, he could have big-play ability and size (6-4, 236) to operate Mullen’s spread attack at a high level similar to Dak Prescott’s success at Mississippi State. Yet the roster is filled with holes while the coaching staff faces a shake-up after the firings of defensive coordinator Todd Grantham and offensive line coach John Hevesy.
Mullen could hire two coaches who are strong recruiters but would have to convince them he’ll be around more than one season.
Timing could play a large role in Mullen’s immediate fate.
With five years remaining on a six-year deal, Mullen is due a $12 million buyout. The contracts of four of Mullen’s eight remaining assistant coaches are set to expire.
Stricklin could decide to invest elsewhere.
A new coach could sell an $85 million stand-alone facility, a long overdue upgrade and future recruiting tool. Getting the right coach could be tricky, given heavyweights LSU and USC also are hiring.
Whatever his future holds, Mullen plans to celebrate with his players if the Gators win as 8.5-point favorites at Mizzou — Florida is 1-4 away from the Swamp.
The 49-year-old displayed a few moves in locker room scrum after the Samford win.
“He was killing it,” veteran defender Zachary Carter said.
Fans soon killed Mullen on social media for the display. After all, the Gators needed a comeback against five-touchdown underdog Samford.
“I’ve never won a game that wasn’t worth celebrating,” Mullen said.
These days, every move Mullen makes is under a microscope. It’s an uncomfortable spot perhaps with no way out.
