Bronco Mendenhall To Step Down As Virginia Head Coach After Bowl Game
Virginia announced on Thursday that head coach Bronco Mendenhall will step down from his role after the team's bowl game.
Virginia athletic director Carla Williams released a statement, praising Mendenhall for the job he's done.
“It has been a privilege to have Bronco Mendenhall direct the Virginia football team over the past six seasons,” Williams said. “He has done an exceptional job of not just transforming the program, but elevating the expectations for the program. He has established the necessary foundation to propel our football team upward.
"He is more than a football coach and the impact he has had on these young men will be a positive influence for the rest of their lives."
Mendenhall, 55, steps down after six seasons in which Virginia was bowl eligible in five, including this season. He has guided Virginia to a 6-6 record this season, 36-38 overall. After a 2-10 start in 2016, Mendenhall quickly made the Cavaliers relevant. In 2019, Virginia made its first appearance in a New Year's Six Bowl, a 36-28 loss to Florida in the Orange Bowl.
His resignation comes as a shock to many, given the success. Speaking with the media shortly after the news broke, Mendenhall said he's stepping down to reassess things in his life, per Action Network's Brett McMurphy.
"Clearly this week there was a sense of clarity," Mendenhall said. "I needed to step back from college football & reassess my life as well as my wife as my partner and next chapter of our life. This was my decision."
Mendenhall previously served as head coach at BYU from 2005-2015. BYU appeared in a bowl game in every season under Mendenhall, recording five double-digit win seasons. He finished his tenure with the Cougars with a 99-43 record.
In what has been a crazy college football coaching carousel, another job has opened up. Virginia joins Oklahoma, Duke and Fresno State as the best openings in college football.
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