Hoover, Ala.— When Dan Mullen was hired at Mississippi State following a disastrous 4-8 season under former head coach Sylverster Croom, the expectations were low.
Mullen would have to build a program from the ground up—starting fresh with recruiting and a new coaching staff. Fast forward six years, and he has turned things around significantly in Starkville, Miss.
“I think this is one of these years we've built a foundation of our program,” Mullen said. “By going to four straight bowl games, by winning four out of five Egg Bowls within the state, we've built a solid foundation for our future.”
Mississippi State finished 2013 by winning three straight games, including a 44-7 rout of Rice in the Autozone Liberty Bowl. Their previous two wins were overtime victories over Southeastern Conference West foe Arkansas and in-state rival Ole Miss.
The Bulldogs have experience across the board returning for 2014. They bring back 30 guys with starting experience —15 on offense and 15 on defense — including quarterback Dak Prescott, one of the few returning quarterbacks in the SEC.
Prescott enters 2014 with some impressive records under his belt from last season. He leads all returning SEC quarterbacks in career rushing touchdowns with 17, and his 13 rushing scores in 2013 were second-most by a quarterback to ever play at Mississippi State. Not to mention his 15 touchdowns last season ranked third among Division I quarterbacks.
“He's a guy that understands the importance of the skill of the quarterback position and he's constantly working on his skill at that position,” Mullen said. “I think he's a much better passer this year coming into this year than he was last year, working on the skill of throwing the ball and being comfortable in the pocket.”
Prescott says finishing as well as they did a year ago motivated the team as they headed into the offseason.
“In the offseason we raised the level to spring football, and then that raised the level of summer conditioning,” Prescott said. “So I think the momentum has carried over a lot, and it’s not necessarily ‘let’s think about what we did last year’ as we go into this season, but we’ve allowed that momentum to carry over.”
Given how the Bulldogs finished last year and the depth that they return on both sides of the ball, the fan base in Starkville have their expectations pretty high.
“We've talked to them about it, embrace all those expectations,” Mullen said. “Our expectations are to find a way to get to Atlanta. That's what we can control and compete for that SEC championship this year.”
Making an SEC Championship a goal as a team is pretty standard for teams within the conference, but Mississippi State has perhaps the most uphill battle of ahead of them — competing and winning in the SEC West — a division filled with powerhouses virtually from top to bottom.
Not to mention the Bulldogs’ schedule features a brutal stretch between Weeks 4 through 7. They travel to LSU week four of the season, get a bye week before facing Texas A&M at home, and to finish it off defending SEC Champion Auburn comes to Starkville.
Despite these odds, Mullen remains confident that his team can compete within the gauntlet that is the Western division.
“What we have to do is follow through with it and live up to what we want," he said. "Playing in the SEC West, the most competitive conference in all of college football, look at the depth and quality of the teams that are on our side of the league just alone to get to that championship game, is unbelievable. So for us to do that, we're going to have to have a pretty special year.”
Despite the fact that the West is loaded with talent from top to bottom, Mullen says this year there are a number of teams that can compete for the division title. With 30 starters returning including a talented dual threat quarterback, Mullen contends that Mississippi State might make a run and surprise some folks this season.
“There's seven coaches in the SEC West that are sitting there, they look and they expect to go to Atlanta. I think that is a pretty unique deal, that that happens. I think that does show the depth, that it is a wide‑open path,” Mullen said. “I think that just shows within each program the confidence the kids can have that anybody on our side of the league can find a way to win and get themselves in that SEC championship game.”
Follow Morgan Moriarty on Twitter @Morgan_Moriarty
Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen speaks to media at the Southeastern Conference NCAA college football media days on Tuesday in Hoover, Ala.
