GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Dan Mullen hit all the right notes during his introductory news conference Monday, vowing to put the fun back in Florida football while embracing the sky-high expectations that come with coaching the Gators.
With former coach Steve Spurrier, former Gator players Shane Matthews and Chris Doering, and others gathered in a standing-room only crowd, Mullen officially took the reins of a program in desperate need of leadership. Mullen walked away after nine seasons coaching Mississippi State to take a six-year deal with the Gators that will pay him $6 million annually.
Mullen's new athletic director, Scott Stricklin, worked with him at Mississippi State. But Mullen's long-standing ties to Florida, including a stint as offensive coordinator from 2005-08, made this a hire that has many inside the football offices thinking about the possibilities. Mullen has a history of developing quarterbacks, including Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow.
In fact, Tebow was the most recent Florida quarterback to find any success on the field. Since Tebow graduated in December of 2009, Florida has ranked no higher than No. 82 nationally in total offense, and that was in 2010.
"Playing quarterback here, at the University of Florida, those are pretty big shoes to fill," Mullen said. "There's a couple of really nice trophies that they give out for the play of quarterbacks that have been here. There's a couple of championship trophies that our quarterbacks expect to lead us to that are here in this building.
"I want somebody that, you know what, when that team walks into the huddle, all they are looking at is saying, 'Hey, we have him so we can win. We have him so we can win.'"
While Florida has struggled with quarterback play, Mullen's Mississippi State teams have had a stable presence under center in Nick Fitzgerald, and Dak Prescott before him.
Prior to serving as the Gators' offensive coordinator, Mullen worked and developed Alex Smith at Utah.
Mullen said Monday that he will continue to run the spread offense that has made him so successful, and will give everybody on the roster a chance to prove themselves.
"I've been very fortunate to coach very talented guys, but you can't just wave a wand and fix anybody," Mullen said. "I've coached guys that were committed to excellence, committed every day to being the absolute best they can be, and those guys are fun to coach."
Florida is set to return quarterback Feleipe Franks, who started the majority of games for the Gators this season.
As a nod to Spurrier, Mullen said he started wearing a visor because he loved watching Florida play while Spurrier was head coach running the Fun 'n' Gun offense.
"Coach Spurrier might argue with me; I don't know if there's anyone in this room likes scoring points more than me, you know what I mean. I love scoring points," Mullen said. "We can score a hundred; I'll keep going. I love scoring points. That's fun."
That will be much more fun for Gator fans after the past several seasons. Florida failed to make a bowl game after finishing 5-6 in 2017. The last time Mullen was in Gainesville, in 2008, the Gators won the national championship. Those much higher expectations? That's the norm.
"I love challenges. I absolutely love it," Mullen said. "And I have as high of expectations as anybody in this room for what this program is going to be like. You know, when people ask for timetables: I have high expectations for next season, I do, and I have no idea what type of team we have."