Dear Editor,
I would like to thank Coach Dan Mullen for the following after game statement. He was asked whether he saw anything positive from the game and he reportedly said: "I don't have any positives at all. We didn't win the game. That's the most important thing, is to win the game, you know, for us, in the end. We preach competition since the first day, that there's a winner and there's a loser, there's really good things to happen to winners, and nothing good happens when you don't win. So I really didn't see much positive."
Coming close doesn’t count; if it did MSU would have scored another touchdown. For over 50 years I’ve been a fan of Mississippi State football. During that time we have developed a culture of accepting the good game or coming close or a moral victory. We have a culture of expecting something less than victory. As a resident of Alabama I assure you that coming close doesn’t cut it for Alabama or Auburn.
If Mississippi State is serious about establishing a winning tradition in football we have to understand that there is winning and losing and nothing else. We have to expect victory and that goes for everyone even remotely associated with MSU. Losing is simply not acceptable.
That in no way means we will not support our team after a loss. It does mean that we will continue to expect wins and look to make a positive contribution to the program no matter our role. We will never achieve success unless we expect success.
Thank you Coach Mullen; thank you for not accepting a good game or coming close or a moral victory. Thank you for making clear that Mississippi State football is about winning.
Jack Kean
MSU ‘71
