Coaching carousel keeps on spinning

Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall said Thursday that he’s stepping down after the Cavaliers play their bowl game, ending his tenure at the school after six seasons.

Mendenhall said the decision was his alone and 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 renew and recover,” said the 55-year-old Mendenhall, who went 36-38 at Virginia.

Meanwhile, Colorado State dumped fiery coach Steve Addazio after a tumultuous two seasons that included an ejection in what would prove to be his final game for the Rams.

The decision came on the day Addazio’s buyout dropped from $5 million to $3 million.

Addazio wrapped up his time in Fort Collins with a 4-12 record. His tenure got off to a rocky start last year when the university opened an investigation into the program’s handling of COVID-19 cases, which uncovered allegations of racism and verbal abuse toward athletes.

Elsewhere: Iowa State junior Breece Hall was named the Big 12’s offensive player of the year by league coaches, while Baylor senior defensive back Jalen Pitre was tabbed defensive player of the year. Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy, whose fifthranked Cowboys play in their first Big 12 title game Saturday against No. 9 Baylor, was selected by his peers as the league’s top coach . ... Lincoln Riley flipped another top recruit from Oklahoma to Southern Cal, this time Raleek Brown of Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, Calif., the No. 60 overall recruit and No. 6 running back per ESPN . ... Nebraska starting quarterback Adrian Martinez announced that he’ll enter the transfer portal. He has up to two years of eligibility left.