Dan Mullen picked up right where he left off at Florida in the worst way possible

After three seasons out of College Football, Dan Mullen is back on a sideline as he was picked to succeed Barry Odom who left UNLV for Purdue. The book on Dan Mullen has always been that he's an offensive guru but, his defenses have been abysmal more than they've ever been good. When Dan Mullen arrived at UNLV, the hope was that he'd be able to keep the Rebels on the path Odom put them on.

That hope may have evaporated on Saturday Afternoon as Dan Mullen and the Rebels faced off against FCS Idaho State a team they were 4 possession favorites against. When Idaho State jumped out to an early 10-point lead it quickly became clear that Dan Mullen's group of transfers wasn't all they were cracked up to be.

Dan Mullen's team was able to hold on picking up a 38-31 win but, the defense was a massive concern in this one.

The Bengals offense made Dan Mullen's defense look like they were a high school team, picking up 555 yards on the day. Idaho State's passing attack carved up a secondary with former 5-star recruits and SEC transfers picking up 395 yards and scoring 2 touchdowns. Late interceptions by Jordan Cooke ended up sinking Idaho State but, for most of this game the passing attack was on fire.

The level of talent that UNLV has on the defensive line and even in their linebacker core should've allowed them to shut down Idaho State's rushing attack. Instead, the Bengals gashed the Rebels picking up 160 yards and 2 touchdowns averaging 6.4 yards per carry.

The part that doesn't show up in the box score are all of the penalties the defense took that helped keep drives alive for Idaho State. UNLV had several back breaking pass interference calls as well as a personal foul that kept drives alive and instantly ended in Idaho State scoring.

The area where Dan Mullen's defense deserves a ton of credit is for how they buckled up and held Idaho State late. On the final three drives of the game, Idaho State turned the ball over which helped the team hold on for the win.

Coming into the season, this UNLV team was picked by many to compete for the Mountain West Championship and potentially make a run to the College Football Playoff. After the showing they had against an FCS opponent on Saturday, both of those goals may be unrealistic as the defense got demolished.

Dan Mullen and his team are going to need to get these issues on defense in order quickly as they'll face a solid Conference USA opponent in Sam Houston next week.

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