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Texas Tech hires new head coach
Texas Tech hired Oklahoma native Matt Wells as its new football coach Thursday night after he was part of an impressive turnaround at Utah State, his alma mater.
Wells, a 1992 graduate of Sallisaw High School, had a 44-34 record in six seasons as coach of the Aggies, who are 10-2 this year and headed to their fifth bowl in that span. He was an assistant at Utah State the previous two years, going to bowls both times, including a school-record 11 wins in 2012 when he was offensive coordinator.
The 45-year-old Wells replaces Kliff Kingsbury, the former Texas Tech quarterback who was fired after his third consecutive losing season and a 35-40 overall record in six seasons as head coach.
The Red Raiders were 5-7 this year, losing their finale 35-24 to Baylor last Saturday with a chance to become bowl eligible.
Army, BYU not guaranteed bowl bids
Army is ranked for the first time in 22 years and the Cadets would win 11 games for the first time in school history if they beat Navy next week and follow that up with a win in a bowl game.
The catch? Army, ranked No. 23 with a 9-2 record, is not guaranteed a bowl bid.
For all the complaints about too many bowls, this is the second straight season there will be more eligible teams (at least 81) than available bids (78).
That has put Army and BYU (6-6), a fellow independent that also has a large following, in the strange position of tracking results from all over the country in recent weeks. Both head into bowl selection Sunday with postseason plans more uncertain than most.
The chances are good Army will get a bid while Miami (Ohio) and Wyoming might not be so lucky.
East Carolina fires head football coach
East Carolina fired football coach Scottie Montgomery on Thursday, with the team 3-8 and assured its third straight losing season.
Chancellor Cecil Staton announced the dismissal two days before the Pirates complete their season at North Carolina State. Defensive coordinator David Blackwell will be the interim head coach for that game and during the transition.
Montgomery went just 9-26 with a 4-20 record in American Athletic Conference play. He lost six of his final seven games.
Hokies’ added game could extend bowl streak
Virginia Tech is making no apologies for wanting to extend the nation’s longest bowl streak.
The Hokies (5-6) scheduled a contingency game against Marshall out of Conference-USA before Virginia Tech’s game against rival Virginia last week, saying they would only play the game only if it gave them an opportunity to become bowl eligible.
Thanks to an improbable comeback and a 34-31 overtime victory against the Cavaliers, the teams will do just that Saturday at Lane Stadium.
The Thundering Herd (8-3) are replacing East Carolina on the Hokies’ schedule. The Pirates were scheduled to play at Virginia Tech on Sept. 15, but concerns about approaching Hurricane Florence led them to pull out of that game early in the week.
Virginia Tech has finished each of the last 25 seasons in a bowl game, the longest streak recognized by the NCAA. Florida State finished 5-7 this year, ending a 36-year bowl run that would be the longest in Division I history had the NCAA not vacated their 2006 Emerald Bowl victory against UCLA because of an academic scandal.