Dan Mullen didn't exactly shoot down reports and rumors linking him to the Penn State job – ESPN is reporting him as being the top candidate for that opening – but he reiterated that he's happy at Mississippi State and is focused on the future here.

Mullen, who's in his third year at MSU, met with the media this afternoon for a regularly scheduled end-of-season chat. Many of the questions, naturally, were about him and Penn State. The Nittany Lions are looking for a replacement for Joe Paterno.

When asked about the buzz, Mullen said in a tongue-in-cheek manner, "Great. I'm sure I'm on everybody's (list). Every time a job comes open, doesn't my name come up? You know our policy. We'll talk Mississippi State football. That's all we ever talk about."

Has he or his agent been contacted by Penn State, or by any other schools?

"We don't talk about that. You know our policy. We'll talk about Mississippi State."

It's natural for Mullen to be linked to this opening. Last year he was mentioned as a candidate for openings at both Florida and Miami, and his name has surfaced at several other places as well.

Mullen was born in Pennsylvania and spent most of his life in New Hampshire, and his father graduated from Penn State.

Mullen will sometimes address the speculation and reports with his players.

"I tell them the same thing. I'm happy here. Let's worry about being here," he said.

The Bulldogs were scheduled to have a 4 p.m. meeting today, but Mullen said he won't address the Penn State reports. The focus of this meeting, he said, is to make sure the players finish the semester strong in the classroom and to run down the bowl preparation schedule.

So he's really not thinking too much about Penn State.

"Everyone speculates on everything in this world. I like to deal in realities. If I spent all my time worrying about every speculation in the world, I'll get nothing accomplished."

Click here for more at Brad Locke's Inside Mississippi State Sports blog.

Read more in Wednesday's NEMS Daily Journal newspaper. Click white arrow below for video of press conference.