Published May 26, 2016
Baylor fires head football coach Art Briles
Kevin Lonnquist  •  SicEmSports
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Art Briles, who guided Baylor’s downtrodden football program to Big 12 championships in 2013 and 2014, has been dismissed, the university announced on Thursday.

Briles, 60, had become embroiled in a cloud of uncertainty when stories surrounding Baylor’s handling of several players involved in sexual assault cases against other students on campus stemming from August surfaced.

Baylor Board of Regents Chair Richard Willis said in a statement: “We are horrified by the extent of these acts of sexual violence on our campus. This investigation [the Pepper Hamilton Report] revealed the University’s mishandling of reports in what should have been a supportive, responsive and caring environment for students. The depth to which these acts occurred shocked and outraged us. Our students and their families deserve more, and we have committed our full attention to improving our processes, establishing accountability and ensuring appropriate actions are taken to support former, current and future students.’’

A Baylor played told SicEmSports defensive coordinator Phil Bennett has been named as the interim coach. Briles, who deleted his Twitter account, told the team in a broad message. At this time, there are no other coaching changes expected within the staff. That includes Briles’ son Kendal, who serves as the offensive coordinator, as well as running backs coach Jeff Lebby, Briles son in-law.

Briles did not return a message seeking comment. The timing of Briles dismissal comes at an awkward moment. Members of the 2016 class are expected to arrive Monday.

Bennett has previous head coaching experience. He served as Pittsburgh’s interim head coach for the 2010 season. He also was the head coach at SMU from 2002-2007. Bennett never posted a winning record at SMU. His best season was in 2006, 6-6.

Briles arrived in Waco from the University of Houston in December, 2007. He replaced Guy Morris. Briles revolutionized football on The Brazos River with a high flying no-huddle offense that caused defenses to react rather than dictate the tempo. Baylor’s offense consistently ranked in the Top 10 or at the top in points per game and yards per game. The Bears also reached Top 10 rankings including as high as No. 3 in the AP poll in 2014.

Following a pair of 4-8 seasons in 2008-09, Briles directed Baylor to its first bowl game in 17 years when it finished 7-6 but lost to Illinois in the Texas Bowl.

But the 2011 season changed the culture at Baylor. With Robert Griffin III at quarterback, the Bears finished went 10-3, scored their first win over Oklahoma in school history on Griffin’s last-second touchdown pass to Terrence Williams. Baylor went on to beat Washington in the Alamo Bowl. Griffin won Baylor’s first Heisman Trophy.

The 2012 season produced a rough start. But the Bears rallied from a 4-5 start that included a win over No. 1 Kansas State. Baylor finished 8-5 with a win over UCLA in the Holiday Bowl.

But during that time, Briles became the focal point of returning football to campus. With the help of several major benefactors including Drayton McLane and the Umphrey family, the dream of playing football at BU became reality. Construction on a 45,000-seat million stadium began in 2012. The Bears called McLane Stadium home in 2014 at a cost of $266 million.

In the meantime, the Bears went on to win Big 12 titles in 2013 in 2014. However, those season ended in disappointment when the Bears lost to Central Florida in the Fiesta Bowl and Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl.

Baylor suffered through an injury-plagued 2015 season that included a season-ending neck injury to quarterback Seth Russell. The Bears were down to using basically a jack-of-all trades at the position. They went to the Russell Athletic Bowl when they defeated North Carolina.

Baylor produced a bevy of NFL draft picks -- the Bears had six taken in the 2016 draft -- including such notable No. 1 selections in Griffin (2012), wide receiver Kendall Wright (2012), offensive lineman Jason Smith (2009) and Danny Watkins (2011), defensive lineman Phil Taylor (2011) and wide receiver Corey Coleman (2016).

However, the season was also filled with speculation with the program’s future in light of the sexual assault allegations. Boise St. defensive end Sam Ukawuchu was put on trial for a sexual assault that occurred in 2014. Ukawuchu was convicted and is serving six months. In 2012, defensive end Tevin Elliott was dismissed from the program because of his own sexual assault. He was convicted and is serving 20 years.

Briles leaves Baylor with a record of 65-37. His career record between Baylor and Houston is 99-65.

It is not clear when and if a new national search for a replacement will begin. SicEmSports has the latest on potential candidates on a forthcoming Hot Board.

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