Football coach Dan Mullen is hitting the airwaves this afternoon for a pair of radio interviews. At about 5:25 p.m., he'll be on Nashville's 104.5 The Zone; later in the hour, he'll visit with AM 560 in Memphis.

Mullen's Bulldogs return to the practice field Tuesday to begin the final week of spring drills. The Maroon-White Spring Game is Saturday, which brings us to the subject of Super Bulldog Weekend. Athletics Director Greg Byrne hasn't been in Starkville a long time – three years – but even he is sensing that this SBW will be a little more crowded than in years past.

"We certainly anticipate this being one of the bigger ones we’ve had," he said via the cell phone this afternoon. "I haven’t come across many Mississippi State fans that don’t plan on being here for the weekend." Mullen has stated the desire to see 40,000-plus fans in Davis Wade Stadium for the spring game, which starts at 5:30 p.m. Only about 5,500 turned out for last year's 6-0 overtime thriller.

So seriously, 40,000? "We’ll find out," said Byrne. "We certainly have tried to promote it in every avenue that we can. The largest crowd ever for a spring game in the state of Mississippi we can find is just 25,000. We’d love to get to 40,000, but hopefully just give everybody a great time while they’re here."

Well, there's certainly plenty to do. For a full itinerary, go here.

In tomorrow's Journal, I columnize about hoopster Jarvis Varnado and his future. A sampling:

"Far be it from me to tell someone to turn down a nice fat contract from an NBA team, but I hope Varnado can see the bigger picture here. Even if he’s assured of being a first-round pick, I think Varnado should return to Starkville for his senior year. … Stay in Starkville, be a big fish for one more year, and lead a team loaded with talent and experience to greater heights."