With seats on the coaching carousel filling up left and right of late, yet another opening has been created.
In a surprising move insomuch as it comes nearly a full week after they played their last game, East Carolina has announced that Ruffin McNeill has been “relieved of his duties” after six seasons as the head coach of the Pirates. The move comes on an injury-plagued 2015 season that saw ECU tumble to 5-7, the program’s worst mark since the same record in McNeill’s second season at the school in 2011.
“After deliberate evaluation, the decision has been made to move our football program in a different direction with new leadership,” athletic director Jeff Compher said in a statement. “We are appreciative of the hard work, dedication and contributions Coach McNeill and his staff have made to both East Carolina University and our community. ...
“Our expectations are to compete for championships. Our goal will be to move expediently in the search process, and based on the outstanding support of our Pirate fan base and enhanced visibility in the American Athletic Conference, I am confident our candidate pool will be deep.”
McNeill finishes his time in Greenville with a 42-34 overall record and a 30-18 mark in league play that encompassed four seasons in Conference USA and two in the AAC. Prior to this year, the Pirates had gone to bowls in four of McNeill’s five seasons, including three straight.
With McNeill out, the focus on a replacement is already centered on Lincoln Riley. The 32-year-old Oklahoma offensive coordinator, rumored to be a candidate for the South Carolina head-coaching job, was part of McNeill’s ECU staff from 2010-14 as coordinator and quarterbacks coach.