Mississippi State Football

Now that college signing day is over and the LOI’s are in the file, it’s time to look back over one of the wildest stories I’ve ever seen in recruiting anywhere.

The battle of Houston, MS occurred between the University of Mississippi and Mississippi State University for star defensive end prospect Chris Jones.

Jones is a small-town, soft spoken kid with an NFL body.  The 6’6”, 255-pound phenom is the kind of recruit that elicits mythological stories.  You know the type, the prototypical player that is too good to be true.  Like the fictitious Sidd Finch, an orphan, raised in Tibet, that throws a 165 mph fastball. 

Except this story is real, or at least as far as I know, it is real.

It all begins over two years ago in the small Mississippi town of Houston, MS.  In a town of less than 4,000 people in North East Mississippi, players like Chris Jones do not come along very often.  Actually players of Chris Jones’ caliber have never played in Houston, MS.

During the summer of 2011, Chris was more interested in basketball.  His family had recently moved to Houston and at 290 pounds he was not as quick off the line of scrimmage as he needed to be.  He had great size but after only playing a portion of his junior season, his stats were not impressive.

A visit from a University of Southern Mississippi coach may have proved to be a turning point in Jones' life.  After seeing Jones play, the USM coach broke the news that he may not have the speed to play in the CUSA. 

Jones obviously took this as a personal challenge.  While he did not go through junior day camps, he went to work in the backyard.  He hit the gym hard, lost 40 pounds and developed a work ethic and attitude that may be the most impressive part of his game.     

Ole Miss’ coaches were in loose contact with Jones before he moved to Houston, but MSU was willing to take a real chance on Jones.  He was a local kid, had good size and to head coach Dan Mullen’s credit, he is not afraid to develop a player that wants to be a Bulldog. 

Jones made a verbal commitment to play at MSU in June 2012 before his senior season and he flourished.  Jones averaged 11 tackles per game and led his small town school to its first ever playoff win.  Jones became a late addition to the Jackson, MS based Clarion-Ledger newspaper’s 10 most wanted football recruits, which led to his invitation to the Mississippi-Alabama All-Star game. 

Against the best players in the region, Jones was named MVP for the Mississippi team with eight tackles, a sack and three tackles for loss.  Then the Under Armour All-American game called.  With an early sack, college coaches began to foam at the mouth.  “Who is this kid from Mississippi playing better than Robert Nkemdiche.” (The consensus number one player in the nation.)

Jones finished the Under Armour game with three tackles, the one sack, one tackle for a loss, forced two fumbles and almost blocked two punts, all while sharing snaps at the position.

“Are you serious, right now?” was my question. 

Everyone knew Jones’ new found attention could make it difficult for Dan Mullen to hold on to his commitment.  The offers began to pour in from all over the nation.  Alabama and Auburn coaches met with Jones and his family in his home.  Florida set up an official visit for Jones.

The attention and phone calls became overwhelming for the young player, but you know it had to be incredibly self-affirming.  Chris Jones knew he was capable to be this type of player and all his hard work was paying off.

Eventually, due to his relationship with MSU and Jones’ desire to play close to home, Dan Mullen was able to hold off most of the other schools except one school that had something the other SEC schools didn’t have.  Chris Jones had friends at Ole Miss.  Oxford is only 55 miles from Houston, MS and his father wanted Jones to visit other schools, to at least know what exists outside of MSU.

During the weekend of January 25^th, 2013, Jones was scheduled to visit MSU on a big recruiting weekend.  The plan was for Jones to be a recruiter himself, as a number of big time recruits would also be on campus and Jones could be a big influence, as a long time commitment.

The only issue was Jones wasn’t planning to go to Starkville that weekend.  He told recruiting services he would be in Starkville but he actually visited Ole Miss that weekend.

Ole Miss was also planning a 5-star weekend, where some of the best players in the nation would be in Oxford; Robert Nkemdiche, Laquon Treadwell, Laremy Tunsil and others visited.  The weekend played out on social media as photos were posted from the recruits twitter accounts of Chris Jones in an Ole Miss jersey, being recognized at a local Oxford night club while fans chanted his name.

How would I handle being treated like that, I have since asked myself. 

Ole Miss fans are hungry for wins and they know that in order to win, you have to have top players.  The students follow recruiting, they know what guys look like, they want to take pictures with them and shake their hand and make sure the recruits know they are wanted and welcomed on the Oxford campus.

Chris Jones had to be blown away by his weekend in Oxford.

After the “rock star” treatment, Jones began to waiver on his commitment to MSU, but like any good southern boy greatly considers what mama wants.  So before he made such a huge decision on his college choice, he wanted mom to visit Ole Miss. 

The plan was to visit Ole Miss the next Saturday and have one last visit to MSU on Sunday before signing day on Wednesday, February 6^th.

But true to form, just like the week before, as the phone calls began to mount and the media ink began to flow, he pulled back and closed himself off. 

Many MSU outlets reported Jones would not actually visit Ole Miss and that Jones was telling them he was still committed to the Bulldogs.

Jones is a really nice kid who had an incredibly hard decision to make.  As a high school senior, the choice of college is the hardest decision you have to make, but for the second highest rated defensive end in America, the implications of his decision affects truly millions of fans of SEC football.  This kind of pressure had to be crushing.  So I would never criticize his decision or his method used.

From information gathered during the weekend before signing day, we know Chris Jones travels to play Kosciusko in basketball and soon after shows up in Oxford with a friend.  UM fan sites blow up with reports of Jones’ unexpected visit. 

The next morning, Jones met with the Ole Miss staff and headed back to Houston, for a lunch meeting with Dan Mullen.  MSU fan sites begin to report that Jones stated he in fact had not visited Ole Miss the night before, creating an internet battle between the two schools fans’ on message boards and twitter.  Never have I seen two schools so sure of their non-compatible points of view.

Jones agreed to attend MSU on an official visit later that day for the MSU-LSU basketball game on the Starkville campus and he would return home that night.

ESPN’s Kipp Adams reported late Saturday night that Jones did not actually return to Houston, he in fact spent the night in Oxford, MS, where he was photographed at a Sigma Nu fraternity party along with several other current Ole Miss football players.

Kipp Adams drops a bomb in the saga, by also reporting that Jones began to receive death threats from fans in regard to his indecision of schools to attend.

At the same time, Jones is texting other media outlets that he is not at Ole Miss.

Sunday morning, Jones finally gets the chance to show his parents the Ole Miss campus and tour the football facilities.  After lunch the Jones family returns to Houston, MS with a lot to discuss and consider.

Reading through the lines of what is actually happening and what is being reported was not that difficult if you are an objective fan.

Chris Jones has been a MSU commit for over a year, he identified with the Bulldogs and really appreciated that he was wanted by coach Dan Mullen.  The other side of this story is he had not visited other schools and when he got the opportunity to visit other schools, his perspective changed and his “world” got larger.

He realized he had more opportunities to consider.

In a short time, due to the excitement and momentum that was in Oxford at the time, Jones bought in, emotionally, to the idea of joining Robert Nkemdice, Lavon Hooks and others that would create a really impressive defensive line.  It was becoming harder and harder to say no to the peer pressure coming from the Ole Miss recruits.

During the next couple of days, Jones finally got the chance to think about all the attention and visits and by his own account, up until the day of signing day, was going to flip his commitment to Ole Miss.

In a video interview with the Clarion-Ledger, after he sent in his letter of intent to play at MSU Wednesday morning, he was 80 percent sure he would sign with Ole Miss that morning.  But as is often the case, when you have a big decision to make, you tend to choose what you know rather than the unknown.

Chris Jones was more comfortable with MSU, they had recruited him longer, believed in him when no one else was recruiting him and he felt more comfortable at MSU since he has made so many visits to the Starkville campus.

Jake Wimberly and I agreed on the MakeItRainSports podcast that given the depth chart at both schools, it would make more sense for Jones to choose MSU, and that is what he ultimately did.

Jones is a great football player now and will develop and become so much better under an SEC weight training program and high level coaching.  He could be a superstar at either school, but at MSU he will have more playing time and get on the field faster compared to the log jam on the defensive line at Ole Miss. 

MSU will allow Jones to develop, on-the-job, and that is usually the best way to learn. 

As a college sports fan, the fate of the recruits should always be more important than your school, and even as an Ole Miss fan, I have to say I think he made the right decision and wish him the best in his career.

Shortly after the end of the 2012 season in which we saw Mississippi State lose five of their last six ball games, head coach Dan Mullen lost defensive backs coach Melvin Smith to Auburn and defensive line coach Chris Wilson to Georgia. 

Mullen, like a lot of head coaches around the country this time of year, must reevaluate his staff, fill vacancies and make changes.  

Mullen went a long way in solidifying his staff over the last few weeks by filling those vacancies and hit a home run in doing so. 

First, Mullen addressed the need for a new defensive line coach by hiring former Kentucky defensive line coach David Turner.

This will be Turner's second stint in Starkville, as he was originally hired by ex-Mississippi State head coach Sylvester Croom back in 2007. 

Turner was responsible for the recruitment of former Mississippi State players Fletcher Cox, Josh Boyd and Pernell McPhee.  He also helped develop former players Titus Brown and Jessie Bowman, among others. 

You can read Turner's full profile right here. 

And, just Friday morning, Scout.com's Steve Robertson confirmed Mullen filled his defensive backs coaching vacancy with former NFL veteran and Arizona Cardinals assistant Deshea Townsend. 

Townsend, a Mississippi native, played his high school football at South Panola in Batesville, MS and played on the collegiate level at the University of Alabama before being drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1998. Townsend was a fourth-round selection and played for the Steelers for 12 seasons, garnering two Super Bowl rings in the process. 

Townsend, who still has a home in Oxford, Mississippi, is expected to bring new life and a spark to a Mississippi State secondary that by all accounts was lackluster in their biggest games of 2012. 

Townsend, one of the younger coaches now on staff, should also be a spark for the Bulldogs staff on the recruiting trail due to his ability to relate to high school kids and his familiarity with the state of Mississippi.

You can read Townsend's profile here. 

For a head coach in college football, it's not just about X's and O's and the Jimmy's and the Joe's; it's also about the people you surround yourself with to work with you daily, and in David Turner and Deshea Townsend, Dan Mullen just made two home run hires that should benefit the Bulldogs in 2013 and beyond. 

The Mississippi State Bulldogs got beat by the Northwestern Wildcats in a lot of ways Tuesday afternoon. The defense look delicate and uninspired. The offensive line was a step slow.

Even so, they found themselves, inexplicably, down only one score in the fourth quarter. Even on a day where almost every unit underwhelmed, the Bulldogs had a chance to win the 2013 Gator Bowl.

But quarterback Tyler Russell made sure that didn't happen.

In a season where SEC quarterbacks have defined their teams, Tyler Russell helped define this game as a failure. Northwestern played its hearts out defensively, but it certainly doesn't compare to SEC competition. Which makes Russell's ball movement stats Tuesday, when compared with his season averages, rather interesting: 

But that's nothing. That's just moving the ball down the field. On a day where the Bulldogs' defense and special teams provided excellent field position, that's surmountable.

What wasn't surmountable was the turnovers.

Russell threw four interceptions on Tuesday, each one his fault, and each one pivotal in its own, unique way. Let's go through them, shall we?

Interception No. 1: On the Bulldogs' third play, from his own 31-yard line, Russell pegs the ball at Northwestern lineman Quentin Williams. The senior snags it out of the air and runs it back for a first-minute score. 7-0, Wildcats.

Interception No. 2: One possession later. After scattered gains of 9, 11, 13 and 11 yards, the Bulldogs line up on Northwestern's 23. Russell forces a ball he has no business throwing, which gets picked off by Ibraheim Campbell at the 9-yard line.

Interception No. 3: Early second quarter, 13-0 Northwestern. Struggling to move the ball on offense, Mississippi State just got its first big break: a 44-yard interception by Denico Autry. The line up on the Wildcats' 15-yard line with a chance to dent the lead. On the first snap after Autry's pick, Russell fires another ill-advised pass, which is picked by Chi Chi Ariguzo at the Northwestern 3.

Interlude: At halftime, coach Dan Mullen speaks to Russell about taking care of the ball. His words: "Go into the locker room, splash some water on your face, readjust your pads and forget that you came out to start the game ... Get in the tunnel, start jumping up and down again, get yourself tight and run out of the tunnel again.

Interception No. 4: After a touchdown and a defensive stop, Mississippi State gets the ball back with a chance to tie the game. From his own 15, Russell is pressured and fires up a wobbling-duck—off his back foot, no less—that Nick VanHoose has time to call fair catch under. He returns the punt interception back to the Bulldogs' 5; Northwestern scores the clinching touchdown four plays later. 

That's a pretty inauspicious dossier of throws.

It's hard to figure where Tuesday's performance came from. On 366 regular-season throws, Russell was only intercepted six times. His cautiousness was one of the many reasons Mississippi State started 7-0. It was one of the many reasons it found itself in a bowl game to begin with. 

But on Tuesday things fell apart for Tyler Russell. He cost his team the football game. Now we'll wait and see if he's capable of picking up the pieces. 

Mississippi State’s football team handed Northwestern the Gator Bowl victory despite the Wildcats’ attempt to give it right back.

The Bulldogs fell by the score of 34-20 in an ugly game which both sides combined for seven interceptions, four of which were contributed by Mississippi State’s Tyler Russell. ESPN’s Stats & Information reported just how uncharacteristic their sloppy play was.

During its first 11 games this season, Mississippi State only had four passes intercepted. The Bulldogs' first two drives in the TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl have both ended with an interception.

There were Bulldogs, however, who played phenomenal despite their letdown. Here are the best of the bunch.

RB Josh Robinson

If Robinson’s performance was foreshadowing of his career to come, Mississippi State’s rushing attack has a bright future.

The freshman halfback only carried the football 48 times this season for 244 yards, but one couldn’t tell that he was inexperienced against Northwestern. He made the most of his seven carries rushing for a game high 91 yards which included a 59-yard scamper.

Expect big things from the 5’9”, 215-pound back in 2013.

DB Nickoe Whitley

Going into the Gator Bowl, “ball hawk” wouldn’t have been the best term to describe Whitley.

The shoe fits after his performance on New Year’s Day, though.

In the regular season, he only picked off one pass. He was, however, second on the Bulldogs in solo tackles with 44.

Against Northwestern, Whitley didn’t record a single take down, but instead finished with two interceptions. The turnovers that he, as well as teammate Denico Autry, forced kept Mississippi State in the game despite Russell’s horrific performance. Like Robinson, Whitley will return next season and be a key cog in the Bulldogs' effort to rebound from their disappointing 2012 campaign.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

Follow @TheRealDDaniels

Johnthan Banks of Mississippi State has won the prestigious Jim Thorpe Award, which is given to the nation's top collegiate defensive back.

Mississippi State beat writer Brandon Marcello shared the news via Twitter:

Mississippi State CB Johnthan Banks (@jbanks_13) wins the Thorpe Award. First in school history.

— Brandon Marcello (@bmarcello) December 7, 2012

Even though the Bulldogs' defense struggled down the stretch against elite competition, Banks continued to shine. He finished the regular season with 59 tackles and four interceptions despite opponents shying away from him late in the year.

He joins a winners list that includes plenty of big names. Among them are Deion Sanders and Charles Woodson. Banks also brings an end to a two-year run for LSU, which had Patrick Peterson and Morris Claiborne win the award the last two seasons.

The senior cornerback didn't receive the attention he deserved during the regular season, which isn't a surprise given the number of defensive stars in the SEC. Since he was playing for a mid-tier Bulldogs team, it was easy to miss his strong play.

While Banks has showed off his big-play ability often over the past four seasons, he has really improved as a pure cover corner over the past two years. That's what really helped vault him to an elite level, making the award possible.

He beat out Alabama's Dee Milliner and Fresno State's Phillip Thomas, who were the other finalists as voted by the Jim Thorpe Association.

Now Banks will turn his attention toward the NFL. He's currently projected to go late in the first round, but will have a chance to rise quickly with strong pre-draft workouts. There are no shortage of teams looking for secondary help.

He possesses all the skills necessary to excel at the next level. It just comes down to refining his cover ability as he began to do during his senior season with the Bulldogs.

Winning the Jim Thorpe Award will also help him attract a little extra attention. Every little bit helps for players getting ready to make the jump.

If you missed Banks' strong play at Mississippi State, he's definitely a player to keep an eye on moving forward.

When Mississippi State head football coach Dan Mullen arrived in Starkville in 2009, he worked day and night to change the culture at Mississippi State. A once dying culture with a defeatist attitude was changed due to hard work, teaching and dedication. 

Mullen established a Bulldog Creed which says " I will give relentless effort" and forged other sayings and slogans to teach his team to not only be winners on Saturdays but in life.  

The results could be noticed in year one as Mullen's team went 5-7 but went toe to toe with the likes of LSU, a then ranked Georgia Tech team and others. 

Fast forward to 2012, and Mullen has done a remarkable job as he has now won 29 games in four years, won three of four from his in-state rival and has his team bowl eligible for the third straight year. 

But in year four, even though his team won eight games, something is missing from the 2012 Bulldogs. In the four losses the Bulldogs had this year against their stiffest competition, they lost by an average margin of 39-15. Not to mention in their biggest game of the year against rival Mississippi they were absolutely embarrassed in the second half.  

The 2012 football season is a success from a wins and loss stand point for the Bulldogs, but as Dan Mullen approaches the offseason, he needs to look himself in the mirror and ask where was the relentless effort this year and why it seemed he did nothing to fix the things that went wrong. 

In several games earlier in the year, you could see this team not playing with relentless effort, but as always, winning cures most things and not much was said. From the game at Troy earlier in the year where the Bulldogs almost gave up a 26-7 lead to eventually barely hang on, to a sloppy first half against South Alabama, there was a lack of effort and focus. 

What about the sloppy first half against Middle Tennessee or getting plum embarrassed against Alabama and Texas A&M?

Mullen's team most days looked ill-prepared and disinterested. Not to mention that when playing teams who threw the ball vertically or down the field it was as if the Bulldogs had no chance, even with an All-American and several seniors in the secondary. That could be due to a lack of pass rush, scheme or both, but the Bulldogs gave up an average of 284 yards per game through the air against vertical passing teams. 

That should never happen with the players the Bulldogs had returning on defense.

Not getting any pressure on the quarterback? Change some things. Against Texas A&M the Bulldogs sat in a three-man front, let Johnny Manziel shred their defense via the run and the pass and still would not change anything. 

Offensively, quarterback Tyler Russell had a great year, but against the best competition he was hit early and often. In the Egg Bowl the Rebels pounded the junior quarterback as the Bulldogs could not pass block or run block. The Bulldogs garnered a whopping 30 yards on the ground against the Rebels. 

Speaking of that Egg Bowl game this past weekend, one that saw the Rebels dominate the second half to go on to a 41-24 thrashing of the Bulldogs, Dan Mullen's squad had every opportunity to bury the Rebels in the first half and could not take advantage of it. 

Three Rebel turnovers, two muffed punts and zero points to show for it. A team playing with relentless effort and a killer instinct would have burred the opposition on most days under these circumstances.

After a 17-17 halftime score, one that could have easily been 30-17 in State's advantage, the Rebels went again to the vertical pass, and State could not stop it. Time after time after time Rebel quarterback Bo Wallace found wide receiver Donte Moncrief wide open behind the seasoned Bulldog secondary.

Again no schematic changes, no effort, nothing. Only a serious beat down from your in-state rival.

Yes, eight wins are great, and yes, three-straight bowl games are great, and the Bulldog Nation loves Dan Mullen. He has given Bulldog fans everywhere something to be proud of and to hold on to.

But this year, the 2012 season lacked that relentless effort, savvy play-calling and timely on the field adjustments. Is that due to coaching or was there a lack of senior leadership? I have no idea, but during this offseason and during bowl preparation it's up to Dan Mullen to look in the mirror and get it fixed.

It is up to Dan Mullen to figure out and tweak his schemes, and it is surely up to Dan Mullen to reteach relentless effort. After all, it was Mullen who brought that mindset to Starkville to begin with. Now it's up to him to re-establish it. 

Mississippi State head football coach Dan Mullen won his first Egg Bowl game in 2009 and he proclaimed "there is only one team on the rise in this state." During the Bulldogs' nine-win season and second Egg Bowl under Mullen in 2010, the ball coach proclaimed "We're never losing to this team again."

Entering the 2012 version of the battle for the Golden Egg, Dan Mullen has held true to that promise as the Bulldogs are 3-0 against their instate rivals, winning by an average of 17 points over that time. 

First year Mississippi head coach Hugh Freeze has done a great job this year with the Rebels (5-6, 2-5) and has his team one win away from bowl eligibility and would love to flip the script this year against the Bulldogs (8-3, 4-3).

The game is a home game for the Rebels, they have three heart breaking losses this year and are on the verge of being a really good football team. But—for all the pomp and stance and hoopla surrounding the Rebel program, they still have to play the game Saturday night at 6 pm CT on ESPNU. 

Dan Mullen and his seniors are yet to lose a game to the Rebels and today we look at three reasons why the Bulldogs will win their fourth straight in the series. 

Tyler Russell is just better than Bo Wallace

In a game of this magnitude, where both teams are looking for an edge, you need not look any further than the quarterback position. Both Tyler Russell for Mississippi State and Bo Wallace of Mississippi have looked fantastic at times this year. Both have put up big numbers and both are the leaders of their teams. 

Russell is on pace to break almost every passing record at Mississippi State. His twenty-one touchdown passes rank third in the SEC as do his four interceptions. 

Wallace albeit an exciting player tends to be a turnover machine. Wallace is last in the SEC with 14 interceptions and when you look for an edge it starts at the quarterback position and I take Russell every day and twice on Sunday. 

LaDarius Perkins is a Rebel killer

Sometimes in sports certain players play bigger in certain games, and that can be said for Mississippi State running back LaDarius Perkins. Perkins has been a thorn in the Rebels' side the last two years via the running game, the passing game and special teams. If you combine the 2010 and 2011 stats for Perkins he has racked up 405 yards and four touchdowns against the Rebels thus far. 

Personnel wise on defense the Rebels have not changed all that much since they last saw Perkins and yes the Rebels look better from a schematic standpoint but look for Perkins to again rise up on the biggest stage of the year for the Bulldogs. 

Protect the ball, Protect the Egg

Offense, defense and special teams are the three main components of a football game but if there is a fourth it is turnover margin. Mississippi State is the top team in this category in the South Eastern Conference. The Bulldogs have forced 28turnovers this season while only allowing 12, and this is a big reason the Bulldogs have won eight games. 

Their counterparts from Oxford, however, have created 24 turnovers but also coughed up the football 24 times. Yes Hugh Freeze has shown he knows how to move the football, but when you cough up the football a little over two times a game on average, that is not good. 

Look for the Bulldogs to continue as they have all year long protecting the football and getting their share of turnovers. 

Final Call

I will be the first to tell you I was wrong about Hugh Freeze. He has his team playing hard, with passion and on the verge of a bowl berth. However, many have made Mississippi State out to be soft, and a paper tiger so to speak due to their schedule, and that is hardly the case. 

Dan Mullen understands and has always understood the value of a rivalry game. During his time as head coach at Mississippi State and as offensive coordinator at Utah and Florida, Mullen is 10-0 in rival games. 

Tyler Russell has played outstanding this year for the Bulldogs and will outshine Bo Wallace this Saturday. LaDarius Perkins has played exceptional in this series and that should not change either. 

When you combine that with the Bulldogs' ability to protect the football it equals a Bulldog win. 

Yes, the Rebels will play hard, and yes it is in Oxford, but Mullen understands these types of games and I fully expect him to hoist the Egg Bowl Trophy for the fourth straight time this Saturday night. 

Bulldogs 24, Rebels 20

After losing three straight games following a 7-0 start, Mississippi State extinguished any talk of Dan Mullen being on the hot seat with a 45-14 win over Arkansas on Saturday.

Mullen's hiring in 2009 held great expectations after the success he enjoyed as an offensive coordinator alongside Urban Meyer at Florida, but after four seasons with Mississippi State, Mullen's track record has been mediocre at best.

Under Mullen, the Bulldogs have gone 30-20 during the regular season with bowl wins in 2010 and 2011. Last season, Mullen's team posted a 7-6 record, stirring up the idea that Mississippi State might be considering a coaching change.

However, Mullen's squad got off to a hot start in 2012, winning their first seven games before entering a brutal three-game skid with SEC powerhouses Alabama, Texas A&M and LSU.

The Bulldogs struggled to match their conference rivals in either of those games, as they were outscored 113-37. The losing streak dropped the Bulldogs to the middle of the pack in the conference standings, placing Mullen in a hot-seat scenario if his team lost a fourth straight game to the Razorbacks this past Saturday.

Fortunately for Mullen, the Bulldogs had no trouble putting away an Arkansas team that has endured losing struggles of its own. Not only that, but Mississippi State got the win in impressive fashion, dropping 45 points on the Razorbacks.

For Mullen, the win had an even greater impact on his coaching career at Mississippi State, as he finally got the monkey off his back with a win over Arkansas after losing the past three meetings. 

With one game left in the season against Ole Miss on Nov. 24, the Bulldogs are on track to finish 2012 with a winning record of 9-3. Historically, the Bulldogs are a perfect 3-0 against the Rebels under Mullen.

Mullen's job status may be safe for now, assuming the Bulldogs can finish with a win against Ole Miss, but his career overall with the Bulldogs hasn't produced the results most people expected out of him when he was initially hired.

For a coach who had a hand in developing offense for successful teams like Utah in 2003-04 and Florida from 2005-08, Mullen has seen little progress in his offense at Mississippi State.

The Bulldogs averaged around 29 points a game this season, and that average is the highest it's ever been under Mullen. Compare that to a 2008 Florida team that put up about 43 points a game.

Granted, Mullen had a more talented group of players with that team, but the fact that Mullen's Bulldogs haven't consistently improved is what puts his job in jeopardy. 

Dan Mullen had the Mississippi State Bulldogs on their way to the strongest start in school history earlier this year. At the end of October, the perfect record came crashing down against Alabama, and the Bulldogs have been on a three-game losing streak. 

With Arkansas and Ole Miss left to finish on the schedule, another loss this week would put Mullen on the Hot Seat. 

Arkansas is having a terrible season, sitting at 4-6 with no hope at a postseason. If they can beat the Bulldogs at home, Mullen may not make it out of the stadium.

There seems to be a national cheering squad for Mullen and the job he has done for the Bulldogs, and, looking at the record, he has been better than most in his four years with the program. 

Mullen picked up a shattered program left behind by Sylvester Croom, and he turned this team into a bowl-winning program. 

This year’s early jump to a 7-0 record made many fans believe that the program had hit the next level and that the Bulldogs had climbed inside the Top 15. Embarrassing losses the past three weeks have shown that this team is no different than four years ago. 

Looking back at Dan Mullen's record at Mississippi State, it is clear that he has coached the Bulldogs to limited success against conference opponents. To date, he has only one win against an SEC Western Division team that is not named Ole Miss in his time in Starkville. 

The Mullen-led Bulldogs defeated Auburn this season 28-10. Auburn is now marching toward a 3-9 finish this season, watering down the win for Mississippi State.

It is one thing to win the Egg Bowl every year, but the folks in Starkville are getting hungry for an SEC Western Division title. The fans want to see their team appear in Atlanta and have a shot at a BCS bowl. 

Arkansas would be considered a comparable team, and they have been to the SEC title game in the past decade. The Bulldogs haven’t. 

A loss to Arkansas would be the final straw for Mississippi State. Mullen's seat would have to start heating up—especially after the year that Arkansas is having with John L. Smith leading the charge. 

The Razorbacks were expected to contend for a national title, but instead they are sitting with two games remaining and no real shot at the postseason. As they try and push for bowl eligibility, this will be a winnable game to help them get there. Mississippi State can’t sleep on the Hogs. 

This game will come in Starkville and will be the morning kickoff for the SEC Network. The Bulldogs faithful will still be present and rowdy, but they will quiet quickly if Arkansas can find its groove on offense. 

This is a must-win for Mullen, and he needs it to be a convincing win—without it, the Bulldogs will begin to question his leadership.

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