Mississippi State is up

MISSISSIPPI STATE COACH DAN MULLEN

• Of note: MSU is going back to a maroon helmet this season.
  
  
• Mullen pretended to use Twitter to open his appearance. "I'm only going to answer questions through Twitter or Facebook ... so I can be the cutting-edge, young coach up here."
  
  
• He feels "warmth" in Starkville. They're so loving.
  
  
• "Since I was young, when I was a graduate assistant at Syracuse, I kept a big notebook of things I would and wouldn't do as a head coach."
  
  
• "The excitement for our program has been off-the-charts."
  
  
• He's aiming to sell 40,000 season tickets before the season begins. Mullen said 37,000 have been sold to this point.
  
  
• Reminder: Carl Torbush is defensive coordinator at MSU. He used to coach at Alabama. He also is a Person Of Significance for Auburn assistant Tommy Thigpen. Torbush coached Thigpen in college and they worked together at UNC a few years later.
  
  
• "We're a multiple spread team. I want to make sure the defense has to cover us from sideline to sideline. We're going to create the matchups. That's the spread offense. That's the offense we're going to run."
  
  
• On being like Utah and Florida: "We probably use about 60 percent of our offense each year. We have to make sure we pick the right 60 percent of (the playbook) to match the personnel."
  
  
• Mullen claims to have no starting quarterback.
  
  
• "We're going to be an attacking defense. We want 11 guys running to the ball on every play. Our whole team is going to play that way. We'll play with that great effort." (Ever heard that before?)
  
  
• Mullen is going to coach special teams. "I'm going to run the whole show that way. If there's a big issue on the special teams, we play a game, you come right to me, I'll answer those questions for you."
  
  
• On team goals: "If you turn on a game film and you watch a team, all 11 players, playing relentless football ... that'll be a very successful team. That's one of our main team goal. If we win enough games, maybe you'll come see us play one day. I want you to say: `Did you see how hard those guys play?'"
  
  
• On the Urban Meyer Influence®: "There probably are going to be a lot of similarities between our program and the programs he had at Bowling Green, Utah and Florida."
  
  
• On this being a tough first gig. The SEC is tough, right?: "You walk into that first SEC head coach's meeting ... and you get to see guys you grew up watching. Steve Spurrier? I was a huge Steve Spurrier fan growing up. You know you're going to have a sold-out stadium in every place you play in this league. That makes it easy to get up and go to work every morning. I couldn't be happier with this opportunity. You want to compete against the highest level against the best there is. I'm the only undefeated coach in the league."
  
  
• How do you make up for having little experience at quarterback?: "The best way to combat it is to get the quarterback in a position to succeed. We always had (The freshman version of Tim Tebow) in a position to do the things he did well."
  
  
• Is MSU still relevant?: "It's only been 10 years since Mississippi State was in Atlanta." (His goal is to win the league ... blah blah blah.)
  
  
• Toughest thing about being a head coach: "I had a great mentor in Urban Meyer. Not a lot was unexpected. The biggest adjustment is learning how to adjust and budget your time. You don't know there's any way to prepare until you're in that seat making those decisions. Every day is a learning experience."
  
  
• All-SEC quarterback?: Believe it or not, I voted for Tim Tebow. I spent more time with Tim Tebow than I did with my own wife. I don't expect my love for Tim Tebow to change just because he's on the other sideline. (Playing against Tebow) is going to be fun."
  
  
• Mullen said playing Florida will be "fun."
  
  
• "Nobody is staying the same in this life. You're either getting better or you're getting worse."
  
  
• On why the spread is so popular these days: "The spread offense -- people have looked at it and seen the advantages in history. Defenses have to account for that quarterback. People find that the great equalizer. That makes the defense defend all 11 players."

THAT'S A WRAP. Next up is Kentucky at 4:15ish.