Strong out at South Florida; Mississippi terminates Luke
South Florida fired coach Charlie Strong on Sunday after three seasons in which the Bulls won fewer games each year.
USF made the move two days after finishing a 4-8 season with a blowout loss to rival UCF. That left Strong 21-16 overall but 4-14 since starting the 2018 season with seven straight victories.
The former Texas and Louisville coach was hired by USF to replace Willie Taggart after the 2016 season. Strong led the Bulls to a 10-2 record in that first year in Tampa behind star quarterback Quinton Flowers. After starting 7-0 in 2018, the Bulls ended the season with six straight losses, and this season has been filled with lopsided losses.
The 59-year-old Strong, who was a longtime defensive coordinator in the Southeastern Conference with plenty of recruiting ties to the state of Florida, is 74-53 overall in 10 seasons as a head coach.
Luke dismissed after 3 seasons
Mississippi fired football coach Matt Luke three days after his third nonwinning season ended with an excruciating rivalry game loss.
Athletic director Keith Carter said Sunday the decision to change coaches was made after evaluating the trajectory of the program and not seeing see enough “momentum on the field.”
Luke, a former Ole Miss offensive lineman, was elevated to interim head coach about two weeks before preseason practice started in 2017 when Mississippi fired Hugh Freeze.
Luke guided the Rebels, who were already banned from the postseason by the NCAA, to a 6-6 record that helped him land a four-year deal through 2021. With the program facing another bowl ban in 2018 and other NCAA sanctions, Luke and the Rebels went 5-7.
Ole Miss finished this season 4-8 overall and 2-6 in the Southeastern Conference, including a 21-20 loss on Thanksgiving night to Mississippi State.
Schiano returns as Rutgers coach
Greg Schiano is coming back to Rutgers.
Athletic director Pat Hobbs announced the university and Schiano have reached a contract agreement, a week after talks to bring back the 53-year-old former Scarlet Knights head coach fell apart.
The contract must be approved by the schools’ board of governors. It is scheduled to meet Tuesday to discuss the hiring.
Schiano was coach at Rutgers from 2001-11. The Scarlet Knights went to a bowl game in six of his final seven seasons.
Rutgers finished off a 2-10 season, 0-9 in the Big Ten, on Saturday with a loss at Penn State. Nunzio Campanile has been the interim head coach since the firing of Chris Ash five games into his fourth season.
Boston College axes Addazio
Boston College fired coach Steve Addazio after seven seasons in which the
Eagles never surpassed seven wins.
Wide receivers coach Rich Gunnell will serve as interim coach, athletic director Martin Jarmond said in a statement on Sunday afternoon, a day after BC beat Pittsburgh to achieve bowl eligibility for the sixth time in seven years under Addazio.
Addazio, 60, was 44-44 since taking over in 2013, earning a bowl-qualifying sixth win with the 26-19 victory over Pittsburgh.
Heisman winner Sullivan dies
Pat Sullivan, the 1971 Heisman Trophy winner at Auburn who went on coach TCU and Samford, has died. He was 69.
Sullivan’s family released a statement saying he “died peacefully at home” Sunday morning, surrounded by relatives. The former quarterback was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2003 and the statement said he “fought a long and difficult battle as a result of his treatments.”
Sullivan, a native of Birmingham, Ala., was a College Football Hall of Famer who played four seasons with the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, wrapping up his playing career in 1976 with Washington and the San Francisco 49ers.
Sullivan began coaching at Samford in 2007 and stepped down in December 2014, citing health issues. He was TCU’s head coach from 1992-97 and then worked as UAB’s offensive coordinator before taking over at Samford.