Florida head coach Dan Mullen had a .600 winning percentage in nine seasons at Mississippi State. (Photo: Miguel Rivera/UAA Communications)
Football Notebook: No. 1 jersey, More Gators Tidbits
Thursday, May 10, 2018 | Football, Scott Carter
Gators head coach Dan Mullen concluded his three-day speaking tour in Miami on Wednesday night. He speaks in Atlanta next on May 23.
Mullen made stops in Lakeland and Fort Lauderdale before closing the road show on Wednesday night at Marlins Park in Miami. At his speaking engagements prior to the Orange & Blue Game, Mullen challenged fans to show up to support the Gators.
More than 53,000 did, capping Mullen's first spring as Florida's head coach with an exclamation point. With the spring game in the rearview mirror, Mullen's message this week still centered on fan involvement and returning the program back to the top.
Wonderful day in Miami with #GatorNation. #GoGators pic.twitter.com/uYPq82wXmM
— Scott Stricklin (@ScottStricklin) May 10, 2018
The coaches and players must do their part on the field, and based on what Mullen saw prior to the spring game, the fans are ready to help in the streets and stands.
However, Mullen told reporters in Miami that the revved up Gator Walk prior to the spring game should not be as newsworthy as it was. Instead, it should be the norm, the way it was when he was Florida's offensive coordinator from 2005-08.
"That's unbelievable that the best Gator Walk they've experienced was during the spring game,'' Mullen said according to SECCountry.com. "That's not right. That's not what this program was built on. That's not the Gators I know. The Gators I know, it is sold out, wild, hardest stadium, toughest atmosphere to play in America."
While Mullen's speaking tour serves primarily as an outreach program for Gator Clubs around the state to generate interest in the team and university, Mullen spends about 15 minutes prior to each event meeting with the media.
Mullen delivered minimal news during the tour, but here are three items to monitor heading into the summer months:
-- Mullen has faced a common question since returning to Florida: Does he plan to utilize the No. 1 jersey worn by such players as Percy Harvin, Reggie Nelson and Vernon Hargreaves III in recent years? No UF player has worn No. 1 the past two seasons and nobody on the current roster has been assigned the jersey number since Mullen took over. "You've got to be a baller to be No. 1,'' Mullen said according to MiamiHerald.com. "I don't know if I have anybody at No. 1 just yet. I don't know if anybody's done enough in general." Hargreaves was the last Gator to wear No. 1 in 2015. "You've got to make sure you're doing things right to get a good jersey,'' Mullen said.
-- Whenever Mullen talks to reporters or fans, he is usually asked about the quarterbacks. No surprise there given that Feleipe Franks, Kyle Trask and Emory Jones are set to enter fall camp battling for the starter's job. Of course, the announcement this week that a certain quarterback from another school is transferring and is on the market as a graduate transfer next season -- as UF's official website, I'm not permitted to use names of unsigned/recruitable players -- added a wrinkle to Mullen's media sessions. The Gators have been down that road in recent seasons by adding transfers Luke Del Rio (underclassman), Austin Appleby (graduate transfer) and Malik Zaire (graduate transfer). The Gators don't appear interested and that makes sense. Mullen has a strong reputation as a developer of quarterbacks and while Franks, Trask and Jones have a lot to prove, eventually you have to build from within to have any chance at sustained success.
-- Speaking of quarterbacks, Mullen is challenging more than fans. He wants to see significant improvement from Franks, Trask and Jones by the time fall camp opens in August. Mullen has coached a string of successful college quarterbacks, including Alex Smith, Chris Leak, Tim Tebow, Dak Prescott and Nick Fitzgerald. They shared a common trait on the road to success. "For any [quarterback] to be successful, they have got to take massive strides between the spring game and the start of fall camp,'' Mullen said. "Every great quarterback I've ever had, that's when they've made their biggest gains."
-- Whenever Mullen talks to reporters or fans, he is usually asked about the quarterbacks. No surprise there given that Feleipe Franks, Kyle Trask and Emory Jones are set to enter fall camp battling for the starter's job. Of course, the announcement this week that a certain quarterback from another school is transferring and is on the market as a graduate transfer next season -- as UF's official website, I'm not permitted to use names of unsigned/recruitable players -- added a wrinkle to Mullen's media sessions. The Gators have been down that road in recent seasons by adding transfers Luke Del Rio (underclassman), Austin Appleby (graduate transfer) and Malik Zaire (graduate transfer). The Gators don't appear interested and that makes sense. Mullen has a strong reputation as a developer of quarterbacks and while Franks, Trask and Jones have a lot to prove, eventually you have to build from within to have any chance at sustained success.
-- Speaking of quarterbacks, Mullen is challenging more than fans. He wants to see significant improvement from Franks, Trask and Jones by the time fall camp opens in August. Mullen has coached a string of successful college quarterbacks, including Alex Smith, Chris Leak, Tim Tebow, Dak Prescott and Nick Fitzgerald. They shared a common trait on the road to success. "For any [quarterback] to be successful, they have got to take massive strides between the spring game and the start of fall camp,'' Mullen said. "Every great quarterback I've ever had, that's when they've made their biggest gains."
Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham signed a three-year, $4.47 million contract that makes him the highest-paid assistant coach in Gators history.
The University Athletic Association released the contracts of the Gators' 10 assistant coaches this week and Grantham tops the pay scale. He is scheduled to earn $1.39 million in 2018, $1.49 million in 2019 and $1.59 million in 2020.
Grantham is a veteran with more than 25 years of experience and spent 11 seasons in the NFL, including three years as defensive coordinator for the Browns.
According to USA Today, 15 assistant coaches earned more than $1 million in 2017, topped by LSU defensive coordinator Dave Aranda ($1.8 million). Aranda signed a new four-year deal in January that pays him $2.5 million annually.
Florida's assistant coaches will earn $4.74 million for the 2018 season.
Athlon Sports released its rankings of all 130 projected starting quarterbacks at the FBS level this week. Franks checked in at 94th overall and 13th in the SEC.
Kentucky's Terry Wilson (95th) is the only league quarterback ranked below Franks, who started eight games as a redshirt freshman in 2017. Franks completed 54.6 percent of his passes for 1,438 yards, nine touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Athlon ranked Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa (No. 2 overall), Missouri's Drew Lock (No. 6 overall) and Auburn's Jarrett Stidham (No. 9 overall) as the top three starters in the league. No. 1 in the country? West Virginia quarterback Will Grier, who started his career at UF.
"We're on the bus, getting ready to get off the bus and the Gator Walk is out of control. The bus was rocking. Tebow gets up on the bus, drops an 'F' bomb in front of the team. He will deny it until he dies. But I'm telling you what, I think we won by 40-something that night. The game was over before it ever started." – Mullen on an emotional moment for Tebow prior to Florida's 51-21 home win over LSU in 2008
Mullen has yet to coach his first game at Florida, but CBS Sports considers him one of the top head coaches among Power Five schools.
The online network ranked all 65 head coaches in the Power Five conferences and Mullen checks in at No. 13, fourth in the SEC behind Alabama's Nick Saban (No. 1 overall), Texas A&M's Jimbo Fisher (No. 4) and Georgia's Kirby Smart (No. 8).
Ranking the top 25 Power Five CFB coaches entering the 2018 season https://t.co/7wvA4JP083 pic.twitter.com/y4u4WgFbey
— CBS Sports CFB (@CBSSportsCFB) May 9, 2018
Their analysis of Mullen:
He began his final year at Mississippi State ranked 21st and will begin his first year at Florida at 13th. While he doesn't have the overall accomplishments that other coaches in these rankings have to this point, the fact he accomplished what he did at Mississippi State carries quite a bit of weight with the voters. 2017 rank: 21 (+8)
Mullen went 69-46 in nine seasons at Mississippi State, which ranks as the second-most wins in school history. Only Jackie Sherrill (75-75-2) won more games in Starkville during a stint that lasted from 1991-2003.
Former Gators punter Johnny Townsend, selected in the fifth round of last month's NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders, showed his sense of humor via Twitter on Thursday. He is joined in Oakland by ex-Gators kicker Eddy Pineiro, who signed with the Raiders as an undrafted free agent.
This tweet aged well #RaiderNation ???? https://t.co/U1pqqT1p7Q
— Johnny Townsend (@johnnytownsend1) May 10, 2018
Gators incoming freshman Justin Watkins, a talented player who scored 35 touchdowns over his final two prep seasons, was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly kicking a female's car and breaking her phone according to the Orlando Sentinel.
The 5-foot-11, 172-pound Watkins was a prized recruit in Florida's 2018 signing class. He was released from jail on a $500 bond at 2:37 a.m. Thursday.
"We are aware of the incident with Justin and are still collecting information,'' Mullen said.
Sue Devine is a second grade teacher who is retiring after 41 years as an elementary school teacher. Where is this going, you ask?
Well, Mullen has fond memories of the woman who taught him 38 years ago at St. Thomas Aquinas School in Derry, N.H. He referenced her at his speaking stop in Tampa.
"When you think back to the people that influence your life,'' Mullen told the Tampa Bay Times, "you can remember your second grade teacher."
Check out the story from Matt Baker for a piece of Mullen's past that resonates strongly with him:
At a speaking stop in Tampa, #Gators HC Dan Mullen name-dropped Tim Tebow, Steve Spurrier...and his second grade teacher. Why Ms. Varney means so much to him, 38 years later (and not just b/c of the small crush he might have had on her) https://t.co/SlFZRO7PY7
— Matt Baker (@MBakerTBTimes) May 10, 2018
Players Mentioned
Aaron Chiles Media Availability 10-15-25
Wednesday, October 15
Damieon George Jr. Media Availability 10-15-25
Wednesday, October 15
Billy Napier Media Availability 10-15-25
Wednesday, October 15
SEC Media Day: Coach Golden 10-15-25
Wednesday, October 15
