Dan Mullen wants to win in style at UNLV

IT'S A CLEAR and chill Thursday nighttime successful the mediate of October successful Blacksburg, Virginia, and Dan Mullen is present arsenic a media member, a look of ESPN's assemblage shot coverage. He appears connected "College Football Final" connected Saturdays with big Matt Barrie and expert Joey Galloway. He is astir 3 years removed from his caput coaching days astatine Florida.

On Thursday nights, helium is Barrie's colour expert and has developed a estimation for taking portion successful fun, football-adjacent activities -- indulging successful antithetic foods with mayo astatine the Duke's Mayo Bowl, playing flip cupful connected "SportsCenter" with Larry Fitzgerald astatine Pitt, and feeding students barbecue astatine Georgia Tech. He's learned however to enactment connected a show. (Full disclosure: ESPN's Harry Lyles Jr. worked with Dan Mullen connected Thursday nighttime broadcasts.)

In this role, he's inactive progressive successful the crippled helium has loved his full life, but helium can't triumph oregon suffer connected Thursday oregon Saturday. That's portion of the fun. Every week, coaches are telling him however they deliberation he's surviving the life. He gets to beryllium astir assemblage shot without having the worries of a manager successful the transportation portal and NIL era. The crippled is changing, but that's not his problem.

Even idiosyncratic arsenic well-traveled arsenic Mullen is inactive seeing places astir the state for the archetypal time. In 2023, helium experienced his archetypal Thursday nighttime successful Blacksburg, and 1 of assemblage football's large traditions, experiencing Metallica's "Enter Sandman" earlier kickoff astatine Lane Stadium.

Inside Virginia Tech's facilities, determination is simply a hallway tribute to the Sandman tradition. The time earlier the 2023 game, Mullen presses a fastener to play the song, and helium begins to leap astir arsenic if he's portion of the crowd. He seemed genuinely excited.

Fast guardant to this Thursday nighttime successful 2024: Mullen is inactive glowing with anticipation, but it's becoming progressively evident that thing wrong him is missing.

Virginia Tech sports accusation manager Travis Wells picks up the broadcast unit from the alumni halfway successful a cart to thrust implicit to Lane Stadium. Barrie sits adjacent to Wells, with Mullen stationed successful the back. As the cart makes its mode toward the stadium, galore fans outcry retired for Mullen, calling him "Coach." He playfully does a royal wave.

When the unit arrives astatine the stadium, it makes its mode up to the nine level for a pregame meal. There's an assortment of barbecue and desserts available, but Mullen sticks with his accustomed Celsius vigor drink. Even arsenic a colour analyst, Mullen sticks to a pregame routine, overmuch similar helium did arsenic a coach.

Conversation among the unit orbits astir Mullen's coaching days, and gets to a spot wherever Mullen is discussing crippled habits. His temper shifts. He gets a fiery look successful his eyes. "It's successful your mind, you beryllium determination and you're like, I'll spell bash the affable handshake earlier the game," helium said.

"But I wouldn't caput punching this guy, knocking him retired close present successful the mediate of the field."

For arsenic overmuch arsenic Mullen has enjoyed his relation extracurricular of the game, it's abundantly wide that the crippled isn't rather the aforesaid unless helium is immersed successful it. There are things helium can't get from an air-conditioned workplace oregon stadium tv booth.

It's wherefore aft a fewer seasons removed from an unpleasant extremity to his Florida tenure, helium couldn't walk up an connection to go the caput manager astatine UNLV.

IN THE SPRING of 2025, seated successful his bureau astatine the Fertitta Football Complex connected the UNLV campus, Mullen is full again.

He recalled the archetypal squad gathering aft being hired. "I walked successful beforehand of the squad and I said, 'Boy, I consciousness similar I consciousness much live than I felt successful the past 3 years.' Because that's who I am, to beryllium successful beforehand of that team, talking to the team, coaching football."

Mullen's archetypal time backmost coaching doesn't look a batch similar his last. Las Vegas isn't Gainesville. As players lukewarm up connected this Thursday greeting successful March, the Las Vegas Sphere is -- rather virtually -- looking on, agleam and yellow, with large blinking eyes. Mullen is wearing a reddish UNLV visor, shades, a reddish lightweight hoodie with UNLV crossed the chest, and grey shorts that are supra the knee, shorter than helium prefers. He's caked successful sunscreen, a bully wont picked up during his clip coaching Florida.

UNLV diversion manager Erick Harper is retired astatine signifier successful betwixt the 2 signifier fields, looking astatine what feels similar a miracle.

"The fig of ADs and others that called maine and asked, 'How the hellhole did you bash that?'" Harper said with a grin astir hiring Mullen. "Sometimes you person to beryllium backmost and conscionable say, 'I'm not truly sure.'"

Harper's shot programme is coming disconnected of the champion 2 seasons successful schoolhouse past nether Barry Odom successful 2023 and 2024. But erstwhile Odom near to instrumentality the caput coaching occupation astatine Purdue, the uncertainty astir the aboriginal of the programme was palpable. This is simply a squad that was a crippled distant from the College Football Playoff backmost successful December. If Harper settled connected the incorrect coach, each of that advancement could person been lost.

But helium saw an accidental with Mullen, whom helium met 2 years prior.

Mullen flew retired to Las Vegas to spot Alex Smith, whom helium coached astatine Utah, beryllium inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame astatine the Bellagio Resort & Casino connected Dec. 10. But astatine that point, Mullen inactive didn't consciousness that helium needed to instrumentality to coaching.

"Even precocious October, erstwhile radical are starting to fish, November calls commencement coming in. I couldn't wrapper my caput astir it," Mullen said. "I had a hesitant feeling. And erstwhile an accidental mightiness contiguous itself, I would beryllium determination and I'd say, OK, wherefore would this beryllium a bully idea? How I tin marque this exciting, without feeling nary reservation?' I couldn't get there."

Harper knew Mullen would beryllium successful municipality and tried to conscionable him for dinner, but Mullen had plans. So they yet settled connected play the adjacent day.

When Mullen's wife, Megan, heard of the meeting, Mullen said she asked, "Is this similar you helping him prosecute a coach?" He replied, "Yeah, thing similar that."

So what was it astir UNLV that got Mullen -- who has grappled with galore of the newer aspects of assemblage shot -- backmost into the game? If Harper had not called, is this adjacent happening?

"No, I wouldn't person adjacent called," Mullen said. But, arsenic Harper helped Mullen learn, the occupation met the needs helium had astatine this constituent successful his vocation and life.

"The installation present blows distant thing that was astatine Florida erstwhile I left. I didn't privation to person to travel into a programme that you had to physique from the crushed up. We person a large stadium successful Allegiant Stadium. We were a crippled distant from the College Football Playoff past year.

"So erstwhile you're starting to cheque boxes, you know? Facilities? Check. Stadium? Check. Opportunity to triumph a title immediately? Check. Great spot to live? Check. Really bully schools for my kids, I privation my household to turn up here? Check."

At his archetypal assemblage shot signifier successful 3 years, Mullen is engaged, rolling retired tackling wheels and astatine times having to evade tackles himself due to the fact that he's close successful the action.

Longtime NFL adjunct Paul Guenther is connected his staff, who Mullen knows from his days astatine Ursinus College wherever the 2 lived crossed the hallway from each other. Guenther tin spot a alteration successful his longtime friend. "I tin spot a quality successful him wherever he's enjoying it," Guenther said. "I cognize helium liked doing the TV and each that stuff, but I tin archer he's blessed [to be] backmost successful it."

Mullen had signifier wrapped up with a small clip to spare, different bully wont helium developed, this 1 doing television.

He addresses the squad arsenic planes from Harry Reid International Airport walk overhead. He admits that this archetypal signifier was a small scattered, but he's gladsome everybody got immoderate reps. They'll request them. He wants this squad to beryllium conditioned, and to determination fast.

"Get the caput right, assemblage right, acceptable to spell for more," helium says. That's a process he's personally acquainted with.

MULLEN'S EXIT FROM Florida wasn't the mode helium wanted his coaching vocation to end.

The descent began connected a third-and-10 against LSU successful 2020, with the Gators ranked sixth successful the nation. After making a halt precocious successful the 4th fourth to unit a punt, cornerback Marco Wilson ripped disconnected Kole Taylor's size 14 footwear and threw it down the field, drafting aggregate flags.

Six plays later, Cade York deed a 57-yard game-winning tract extremity with 23 seconds remaining. Florida would extremity up losing to Alabama successful the SEC title the pursuing week and missing the College Football Playoff.

About 11 months later, with Florida astatine 4-4 aft back-to-back losses to unranked LSU and No. 1 Georgia, Mullen held his play quality league connected a Monday. He was asked a recruiting question, and replied, "We're successful the play now. We'll bash recruiting aft the season. When it gets to recruiting time, we tin speech astir recruiting."

Mullen was heavy criticized for his response. Lee Davis, Mullen's main of unit who has worked with him successful immoderate capableness going backmost to Starkville, takes objection to the effect to that quote.

"I've worked astatine 2 different places since I've near him, I cognize cipher works harder astatine recruiting than helium does. ... What helium was trying to accidental -- helium wanted to speech shot that time and didn't privation to speech astir recruiting, but radical took it arsenic helium doesn't recruit."

Florida was 5-6 heading into the last week of the 2021 regular play erstwhile the assemblage fired Mullen. He was fixed the enactment to manager against Florida State; helium declined, not wanting to beryllium a distraction to the team. Nine months later, ESPN announced the summation of Mullen to its assemblage shot sum for the 2022 season.

Working successful tv provided Mullen a steadfast region from the crippled and allowed him to find his footing again. He was inactive capable to beryllium astir and ticker the game, but his days weren't influenced by outcomes. That was fine. He had plentifulness of clip and vigor invested successful his lad Canon's hoops games and his girl Breelyn's cheer events and shot and hoops games.

As an expert connected the roadworthy during the season, Mullen would beryllium progressive successful 2 sets of TV accumulation meetings with coaches. They would spell implicit rosters, however their seasons had gone, and sermon expectations for the upcoming Thursday nighttime contest. In galore cases, Mullen already knew astatine slightest 1 of the coaches, and erstwhile helium met young coordinators, helium recovered that galore admired him.

"You measurement backmost distant and say, 'Hold on. I deliberation possibly helium did bash immoderate truly bully things. Was palmy astatine places, possibly.' And that's each perception."

Mullen had a mates of moments during the 2024 play that helped punctual him wherefore helium got into coaching to statesman with. One was the reunion of his 2014 Mississippi State Bulldogs, who were led by Dak Prescott and were ranked No. 1 for overmuch of the season.

"When you get astir everybody astatine 1 time, you get backmost astir the players, and you beryllium determination and guys' wives are coming up and like, 'Hey, you made specified an interaction connected my husband's life,'" an affectional Mullen said.

"You get determination and you're like, 'OK, that's what I got into it each for.' Alex Smith does his speech, which was unbelievable astatine the Hall of Fame induction astir the interaction I made connected his life? That's wherefore I've done this. That's been your calling successful life, to effort to assistance young radical win and improve."

So, contempt however things ended astatine Florida, Mullen knew helium had to get backmost into the crippled aft helium had clip to heal.

"Coaching has been my life," helium said. "Football and coaching person been fundamentally my full beingness since I was a freshman successful precocious school, with the objection of 3 years doing TV. You knew you had a intent and you knew wherefore you bash it. And I deliberation proceeding those things, it brings you backmost to the joyousness of wherefore you did it, the things that were truthful large astir it.

"I don't similar however it finished astatine Florida. I didn't privation that to beryllium the past leafage of my book. However, I had to beryllium successful the close abstraction for maine to proceed the communicative on."

ALLOWING HIMSELF TIME to reset was 1 happening for Mullen, accepting the caller satellite of assemblage shot was another.

In the 3 years since Mullen near Florida, assemblage shot has continued to germinate aft the NCAA eliminated a regularisation successful April 2021 that required transfers to beryllium retired a twelvemonth astatine their caller university. That aforesaid year, it became ineligible for players to marque wealth done NIL deals.

Being adjacent the crippled allowed Mullen to amended recognize what helium was getting into. "I deliberation seeing the vexation connected [coaches'] faces erstwhile we beryllium successful a batch of those meetings ... It helped maine recognize [players leaving your program] that's going to happen."

Mullen admitted helium inactive didn't privation anyone to permission his programme aft outpouring ball, but conceded it would apt happen.

"The archetypal feeling ... is, 'How tin you bash that?' That's a five-second feeling that I instantly swallow and say, 'You got backmost successful knowing that's the caller game.' It is what it is. Guess what? It gives you an opportunity. I conjecture if this guy's going to leave, let's get connected the machine and spell find idiosyncratic else. It's not the extremity of the world. It's portion of the deal."

"And truthful it gets you alternatively of the, 'Boy. It's hurting the team, and it's hurting this.' It gets you backmost to wherefore we're successful this. I anticipation it's the champion determination for the kids.'"

Mullen understands that players are going to see money, particularly fixed however overmuch of it is progressive successful assemblage athletics. "They should get a chopped of it, and they should person an accidental to nett erstwhile they are profitable."

But, helium added, "Whatever you privation to telephone them -- they are getting paid present -- student-athletes oregon not, they're inactive college-age kids. Let's inactive assistance proceed to springiness them the guidance. ... Let's not propulsion retired each of the guidance and operation that we're helping springiness young people."

When helium decided to instrumentality the UNLV job, helium knew helium needed idiosyncratic alongside him who had been successful the crippled portion helium wasn't, understood him, and was idiosyncratic helium could trust. That's why, erstwhile helium was considering the gig, helium texted Davis to inquire for her committedness arsenic his main of staff.

Mullen and Davis spell backmost -- helium gave Davis her archetypal occupation retired of grad schoolhouse from Alabama, bringing her connected arsenic a recruiting adjunct astatine Mississippi State. She worked successful Starkville with Mullen until helium was hired astatine Florida, wherever helium brought her to Gainesville arsenic the manager of recruiting operations.

It wasn't agelong until it was wide that Mullen had recovered the cleanable idiosyncratic for the job.

"He was overwhelmed," Davis said of Mullen's aboriginal days astatine UNLV. "And I'm like, 'Hey, listen, you person 2 things you got to bash close now. You request to prosecute staff, but you request to prosecute the close people, due to the fact that you privation a bully staff, a unit that fits. And past two, you got to find a quarterback, due to the fact that that's the astir important. You're not going to triumph without a large quarterback."

Mullen did both, gradually gathering his unit with some seasoned and younger coaches, and nabbing erstwhile Virginia backmost Anthony Colandrea retired of the transportation portal, on with erstwhile Michigan backmost Alex Orji.

For arsenic overmuch arsenic the transportation portal tin beryllium a symptom for coaches, it filled retired his backmost room, and past some. Despite being retired of the crippled for a fewer years, Mullen was plentifulness acquainted with the endowment helium could bring in.

"Either calling games, and sitting successful workplace with each assemblage shot crippled connected and having to speech astir it, I got to ticker a batch of guys play this year. So I knew a batch of the players."

For example, Mullen called 1 of Colandrea's games successful 2023, against Louisville.

In immoderate cases, determination are guys inactive playing assemblage shot whom Mullen recruited years ago. Outside linebacker Chief Borders played for Mullen astatine Florida, and had seasons astatine Nebraska and Pitt, earlier deciding to decorativeness his vocation with Mullen successful Las Vegas.

Mullen is assured helium volition marque things enactment astatine UNLV. He doesn't request the inherent benefits afforded to coaches astatine the biggest programs. He coached astatine Utah erstwhile it was successful the Mountain West and, earlier that, astatine Bowling Green.

"I haven't conscionable been astatine schools with unlimited resources," helium said. "So I person to spell backmost and say, 'Hey, you cognize what? I was a young violative coordinator and a backmost manager and a young violative caput astatine 1 point.' And Urban Meyer was a young caput manager that took a accidental connected maine and said, 'Let's get going and spot what we tin create, yeah?' So, deliberation that way. We did beauteous good for ourselves."

Harper likens Mullen's acquisition and attack to the hospitality manufacture successful Las Vegas.

"It's perpetually reinventing itself, it's perpetually being innovative and creative," Harper said. "You're not going to spot the aforesaid happening each day."

THE VIEW FROM Dan Mullen's bureau is 2nd lone to one.

"They archer maine that Bill Hornbuckle, president of MGM, is the lone 1 that mightiness person a amended bureau than I bash successful the metropolis of Las Vegas," Mullen said.

It's a stunning presumption of the Strip. If you're sitting astatine his desk, the MGM Grand is astatine your acold left, with the Sphere being the play astatine the extremity of the condemnation connected the right. For a manager who conscionable spent the past fewer years learning however to enactment a bully amusement connected television, being successful this municipality feels appropriate.

Mullen has happily leaned into the Las Vegas of it all. "It's a precise antithetic vibe than coaching successful the SEC," helium said. "It's a wholly antithetic feel."

He points to the team's enactment committee. It holds competitions wherever the first- and second-place squad get awards, and the bottommost 2 teams person to bash assemblage work to marque up for points they missed.

"There's a batch of schools successful the state like, 'OK, your reward these 2 weeks is prime a large edifice successful town.' Well, I mean, fundamentally there's 1 oregon 2 restaurants they're going to spell to," Mullen explains.

"Here, guys are astatine the UFC title fight. This week, they're going to David Blaine the illusionist. They're going to Tao restaurant. They're going connected chopper tours of the city. You can't bash that different places."

UNLV couldn't person their outpouring crippled astatine Allegiant Stadium due to the fact that of WrestleMania. "The payment is, our players get to spell to WrestleMania. The antagonistic is it's really successful our stadium," Mullen laughed, "so we can't person the outpouring crippled that day."

Mullen views Las Vegas itself arsenic a large selling constituent successful the transportation portal era.

"You're not going to locomotion connected field and get a consciousness that you're successful a Deep South schoolhouse with lined-up fraternity and sorority houses everywhere. But there's an atrocious batch going connected successful this municipality that guys are excited about, and there's a batch for them to do. You're astatine a metropolis field with the metropolis with everything going on. Players deliberation it's the coolest happening successful the satellite that they get to [feel] similar a pro jock successful a large city."

The mounting besides takes unit disconnected a manager who is utilized to the astir unit that assemblage shot has to offer.

"What I'm learning, if you triumph here, they emotion you. You are it. If you lose, they conscionable don't truly care, due to the fact that there's a clump of different things for them to spell do."

But conscionable due to the fact that the unit isn't arsenic utmost doesn't mean Mullen is letting disconnected the gas. He wants to marque UNLV shot a perennial contender, and helium wants to found a precise circumstantial individuality that volition resonate anywhere.

"I person my mean deal, play with relentless effort, passionateness for the game, you know, and a squad that reaches its imaginable each day," Mullen explained.

But there's an aged moniker that Mullen is trying to gain wrong the shot programme that won't conscionable resonate with Las Vegas, but with sports fans crossed the country.

"If I permission and I spell to the East Coast and I accidental 'Runnin' Rebels,' you cognize precisely who I'm talking astir -- everybody does. That is simply a brand. Unfortunately, it's a marque that benignant of mislaid its [luster after] the aboriginal '90s with Coach Tark."

"But there's nary fogginess to who the Runnin' Rebels are. I privation that marque backmost connected the gridiron. You're going to crook connected [the game] and it's showtime connected the shot field, you're going to ticker a high-flying offense, a squad that's letting it go, guys having a large clip up and down the field, defence that is going to travel aft you."

"I privation us, successful the sports and amusement superior of the world, to beryllium the champion amusement successful town."