Rutgers President Robert Barchi said the move the shake up the athletic department was not due to any single factor, but he cited the off-field problems of the football team and a program that was "not moving in the right direction," after a losing season. Watch video
NEW BRUNSWICK -- Rutgers University President Robert Barchi said his decision to fire the school's athletic director and its head football coach was in part a response to the increasingly competitive environment the state university now faces with its entry into the Big Ten Conference.
"There is a lot of pressure in this league and we have to succeed," he said.
In a conference call with reporters several hours after terminating the contracts of coach Kyle Flood and athletic director Julie Hermann --and after meeting privately for 20 minutes with the football team earlier in the afternoon -- Barchi said the move to shake up the athletic department was not due to any single factor.
However, he cited the off-field problems of the football team and a program that was "not moving in the right direction," after a losing season.
"It made sense to start fresh," he said.
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The Scarlet Knights went just 4-8 this year, but were rocked by scandal, including the arrests of several key players charged in a series of home invasions, reports of failed drug tests, and the improper contact by Flood with a faculty member aimed at boosting the grade of a key cornerback who had been deemed academically ineligible to play.
Rutgers immediately announced the hiring of Patrick Hobbs, Dean Emeritus of the Seton Hall University School of Law who previously led the athletics program at Seton Hall University, to be the new athletic director.
Hobbs, who was on the conference call, said he was aware of the challenges, but called it a "tremendous opportunity" to be coming to Rutgers.
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"I'm really exited by this. Our affiliation with the Big Ten has elevated the competition we're going to be up against," he said. "I see nothing but opportunity here."
Hobbs was offered a five-year contract that will pay him $560,000 a year, with annual incentivized bonuses based on performance, said Barchi.
Hobbs said the search has already begun for a coach to replace Flood.
"We want to bring a great coach to Rutgers. We're going to work and find the right coach," he said.
The team's associate head coach, Norries Wilson, will serve as the interim head coach leading the university's off-season program until a new head coach is hired.
Flood, 44, was in his fourth year as head football coach at Rutgers. Barchi said the university would pay Flood $1.4 million and that the money likely would be a combination of private and university funds. Hermann, 52, was being paid $450,000 annually on a contract that runs through June 2018. She will be paid her full base salary and health and pension benefits, Barchi said.
The announcements of the terminations came after days of mounting speculation that a major shakeup in the athletic program was in the works, Hermann was summoned to Barchi's home for a short meeting shortly before noon. Flood, on a recruiting trip to Long Island, was notified by phone.
http://www.nj.com/rutgersfootball/index.ssf/2015/11/kyle_flood_fired_as_rutgers_football_coach.html
In an announcement to the university community, Barchi said while the Scarlet Knights under Flood won 26 games and played in three bowl games, "our continued struggles on the field combined with several off the field issues have convinced me that we need new leadership of our football program."
In the wake of the university's investigation into the grading issue, Flood had been suspended for three games in September and fined $50,000.
Barchi, said he reached the conclusion this past week that the university needed a fresh start in its athletic program and "it would not have been fair to Julie, to Rutgers and our student athletes, or to potential football coaching candidates, for her to continue in her role."
Ted Sherman may be reached at tsherman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. Find NJ.com on Facebook.