Virginia coach to quit after bowl

Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall is stepping down after the Cavaliers play their bowl game, abruptly ending his tenure at the school after six seasons.

“I would love to say there’s been this buildup and a long amount of epiphanies and thought, but clearly this week there was a sense of clarity to me that I needed to step back from college football and reassess, renew, reframe and reinvent, with my wife as a partner, our future and the next chapter of our lives,” Mendenhall said in a hastily organized conference call with reporters.

The decision was his and his alone, Mendenhall said, adding that athletic director Carla Williams and university president Jim Ryan asked him to stay.

“It’s just a chance after 31 years straight to step back … and reinvent myself and our family and our purpose,” the 55-year-old Mendenhall said.

Mendenhall went 36-38 at Virginia, leading the Cavaliers to five straight bowl appearances and their only Atlantic Coast Conference title game appearance two years ago.

The Cavaliers finished the regular season 6-6 after losing 29-24 to Virginia Tech last Saturday.

ELSEWHERE

Nebraska

Quarterback Adrian Martinez will enter the transfer portal. The three-time captain completed his best season in 2021, completing 61.8% of his throws for 2,863 yards with 14 touchdowns and 10 interceptions for a career-best rating of 149.0.

Colorado State: Colorado State fired fiery coach Steve Addazio after a tumultuous two seasons. The decision came on the day Addazio’s buyout dropped from $5 million to $3 million.