Dan Mullen Seemingly Takes Another Shot at Florida Gators

There appears to be no love lost between Dan Mullen and the Florida Gators.

Former Florida Gators head coach Dan Mullen is in his first season at UNLV. | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

There appears to no love lost between Dan Mullen and anything to do with the Florida Gators - or in this case, the city of Gainesville.

The former Gators' head coach on Wednesday seemingly took another shot at the program in a post to his personal X account, sharing a link to an Men's Journal study that listed the city of Gainesville as the most dangerous college city.

"Come to UNLV. Las Vegas is a great fun and SAFE college town," Mullen tweeted.

https://t.co/2ES0BnQlBu

Come to UNLV. Las Vegas is a great fun and SAFE college town.

— Dan Mullen (@CoachDanMullen) August 20, 2025

While not blatant, the not-so-subtle shot at the University of Florida is the latest from the former head coach, who was dismissed after a 5-6 record in the 2021 season (he did not coach in the regular season finale or in the bowl game).

After his hiring at UNLV, Mullen, in an interview with ESPN, compared the facilities he has with the Rebels versus the facilities he had in four seasons with the Gators. It is important to note that Florida's new Heavener Football Training Facility did not open until after Mullen had been fired and current head coach Billy Napier had been hired.

"The facility here blows away anything that was at Florida when I left," Mullen told ESPN's Harry Lyles Jr. "I didn't want to have to come into a program that you had to build from the ground up. We have a great stadium in Allegiant Stadium. We were a game away from the College Football Playoff last year.

"So when you're starting to check boxes, you know? Facilities? Check. Stadium? Check. Opportunity to win a championship immediately? Check. Great place to live? Check. Really good schools for my kids, I want my family to grow up here? Check."

In four seasons leading the Gators from 2018-21, Mullen went 34-15 with a pair of New Year's Six Bowl wins with a Peach Bowl win over Michigan to cap off his first season and an Orange Bowl win to cap off the 2019 season.

Former Florida Gators head coach Dan Mullen had a strong start to his tenure with the program with back-to-back bowl wins and a 21-5 record. | Jason Getz-Imagn Images

After a 21-5 start to his tenure, the wheels slowly unraveled from there with a 13-10 record in his final two seasons.

Despite having a Heisman Trophy finalist at quarterback in Kyle Trask and a top five pick at tight end in Kyle Pitts in 2020, defensive gaffes and an inability to adapt led the Gators to fall from 8-1 and in playoff contention to 8-4 with question marks entering 2021.

Mullen's last year was his worst with a 5-6 record which included close losses to Alabama, Kentucky, LSU and Missouri and blowout losses to Georgia and South Carolina. Florida's 2-6 SEC record that season was the worst conference record by the program since the 0-6 finish in 1979.

Mullen will make his coaching debut with UNLV on Saturday when the Rebels host Idaho State at 4 p.m. ET. Meanwhile, the Gators, which enter year four under Napier, will host Long Island on Aug. 30 at 7 p.m. ET to open the season.