Dan Mullen has his next coaching job, sort of.
After a 9-year run at Mississippi State and four at Florida (three of them successful), Mullen could have an NFL or major college offensive coordinator job today, should he so desire. Instead, Mullen is downshifting in intensity, a deserved breather after a 28-year climb that took him from Wagner College to the SEC.
Lake Oconee Academy has confirmed Mullen will pitch in as an extremely-overqualified volunteer consultant. It was originally reported over the weekend that Mullen would be the offensive coordinator at the Greensboro, Ga., private school, but the school said his involvement will be much more informal.
“Coach (Dan) Mullen will serve as a contributing resource to the football program and athletic department at Lake Oconee Academy,” AD Chris Ingle said. “Coach Mullen’s knowledge and experience in the game of football are world-class. We look forward to him sharing this with our coaches and student-athletes. He will offer tremendous insight and guiding direction into the building of our young program, especially in the areas of offense and quarterback development.”
The Mullen family owns a vacation home in the area, and will take up residence there during Dan's hiatus from full-time coaching.
Mullen is 103-61 as a head coach, in addition to winning a Fiesta Bowl at Utah and two national titles at Florida as Urban Meyer's offensive coordinator.
Lake Oconee Academy opened in 2007 but did not begin football until last season and does not play a varsity schedule yet. The program will break in a new head coach this year after its original leader left following the 2021 inaugural season.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.