If you thought Mississippi State’s New Year’s Day victory over Michigan in the Gator Bowl would be the last time you heard from Dan Mullen and company for a while, well, think again.
There is rarely an opportunity for an off week, let alone an “offseason” in the current college football landscape, and 2011 will be no different in Starkville.
Even in the 10 days between the Gator Bowl and the first Reflectorof the semester, there has been enough football news to fill entire sports sections. With that in mind, let’s take a look back at the changes.
Diaz now wearing burnt orange, Wilson takes control of defense
In just two offseasons, Manny Diaz has gone from defensive coordinator at Middle Tennessee State to defensive coordinator at Texas.
Mullen brought the up-and-coming coach onto his staff, along with defensive line coach Chris Wilson, last January. After an improved defense helped lead the Bulldogs to a 9-4 season and a New Year’s Day bowl, Texas came calling for Diaz’s services after Will Muschamp left his post as defensive coordinator at UT to take the head job at Florida.
“Everywhere I called, Manny Diaz’s name came up,” Texas coach Mack Brown said at the press conference introducing Diaz.
While Diaz is widely considered a rising star in the coaching profession and made a large impact in one season with the MSU program, Mullen did not have to look far to find a viable replacement.
On Jan. 6, MSU released a statement announcing that Chris Wilson will be promoted from co-defensive coordinator/defensive line coach to defensive coordinator. Wilson worked closely with Diaz, designing the schemes the Bulldog defense employed in 2010, and said he will continue to use the aggressive defense they designed.
“There’s still a great deal of improvement to make, and we’re looking forward to hitting the ground running both in recruiting and when we get back to the practice fields,” Wilson said.
Wilson is not the only member of the Bulldog coaching staff to receive a promotion in 2011.
When wide receivers coach Mark Hudsputh left to take the head coaching job at Lousiana-Lafayette in December, he left a void on Mullen’s staff. Graduate assistant Angelo Mirando coached the receivers while preparing for the Gator Bowl and earned a promotion to a full-time gig as wide receivers coach.
Mirando played at Case Western Reserve and took a graduate assistant position at Florida in 2008. Mirando then came with Mullen to Mississippi State, and now finds himself a position coach in the SEC at the age of 25.
“Angelo has a great knowledge of our offensive system and what we’re trying to accomplish,” Mullen said. “He did a tremendous job during the bowl preparation, and I’m confident he’ll do a great job working with our receivers full-time.”
Mirando inherits a young but talented group of receivers that started to emerge late in the season.
The only position left to fill is linebackers coach, and Mullen has suggested he may make whoever fills that role a co-defensive coordinator.
Four new Bulldogs welcomed to Starkville
State announced Wednesday that four players have enrolled early and will participate in spring practice.
Three of the early enrollees come from the high school ranks (defensive lineman John Harris, quarterback Dak Prescott, offensive lineman Nick Redmond), while offensive lineman Joey Trapp transferred from Los Angeles Harbor Community College.
Harris, Prescott and Redmond were all ranked as three-star prospects by both Rivals.com and Scout.com.
While Relf appears to have solidified his role as the starting quarterback in 2011, the competition for the backup spot will be interesting to watch with Prescott added to the mix of Tyler Russell and Dylan Favre.
Let the recruiting circus begin
If you think your significant other has commitment issues, just follow recruiting for the next month. Eighteen-year-old prospects will commit, decommit, give “soft verbals” and who knows what else between now and National Signing Day on Feb. 2. 
Mullen’s 2011 class took a blow this weekend when  Madison Central wide receiver Tobias Singleton chose Ole Miss over MSU during the nationally-televised U.S. Army All-American Bowl.
Also, four-star recruits linebacker C.J. Johnson (Philadelphia High School) and wide receiver Nickolas Brassell (South Panola High School) have both wavered in their commitments to MSU. Both are expected to wait until National Signing Day to announce their decisions.
It remains to be seen if Diaz’s departure will have a significant impact on recruiting, but Mullen and Wilson can still sell program continuity after promoting from within.