Oregon has fired four-year head coach Mark Helfrich, the school announced in a press release Tuesday evening.
The announcement comes three days after the Ducks ended their worst season since 1991 with a 34-24 loss in the Civil War game against Oregon State on Saturday. It is the first time Oregon has fired a head coach in 40 years, when it fired Don Read after three seasons.
“We want to thank Mark for his eight years with the University of Oregon and appreciate his efforts on behalf of Oregon football,” Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens said in the release. “We wish Mark and his family the best.”
Mullens and Helfrich met Tuesday evening after Mullens returned from Dallas, Texas, where he was meeting with the College Footballl Playoff comittee.
“It is a great honor to have served as the head football coach at the University of Oregon,” Helfrich said in the release. “It is with respect and disappointment that we receive this decision. Plain and simple — we didn’t win enough games this season.
“Thank you first to my wife, Megan, and our family, the fans, the campus community, the board, our donors and administration. To our coaches, staff and their families, it is impossible to communicate my gratitude for the environment we got to work in every single day.
“Finally, to the players — thank you, and I love you. The future is bright for this young, talented team, and we will be supporting them and their new leadership.”
Oregon will pay Helfrich $11.6 million to buy him out of the final three years of the five-year, $17.5 million contract he signed after leading the Ducks to the National Championship game in 2014.
Helfrich and Oregon ended the 2016 season with a 4-8 record, marking its first losing season since 2004. The Ducks won their first two nonconference games of the year before suffering five straight losses, including an abysmal home showing against Washington that ended in a 70-21 loss.
The Ducks’ offense showed flashes of brilliance at times this year, but it was ultimately their defense that left them in the bottom of the Pac-12 standings. Oregon finished 126th in the nation in total defense and surrendered 41.4 points per game. Brady Hoke’s arrival at defensive coordinator was intended to revitalize 2015’s lackluster defense, but instead Oregon regressed statistically on that side of the ball.
Aside from on-field struggles, a long list of Duck players were involved in off-field incidents throughout the year, which may have contributed to the unsuccessful season.
Senior defensive end Torrodney Prevot, junior wideout Darren Carrington and junior linebacker Eddie Heard have all been investiaged by police for violent incidents this season.
On Nov. 13, Oregon defensive tackle Austin Maloata was arrested for DUII, reckless driving and possession of methamphetamine after he was involved in a traffic collision in Eugene following Oregon’s loss to Stanford. Maloata was dismissed from the team later that day.
Prior to Oregon’s win over Utah in Salt Lake, the Emerald released an investigation that revealed senior tight end Pharaoh Brown has been accused of three acts of violence since 2014, but has never been publicly disciplined by the team or University of Oregon. Brown did not suit up for Oregon’s final two games.
Follow Jarrid Denney on Twitter @jarrid_denney