The Oregon Ducks announced they have fired head football coach Mark Helfrich following a meeting between him and athletic director Dan Mullens on Tuesday night.
"We want to thank Mark for his eight years with the University of Oregon and appreciate his efforts on behalf of Oregon football," Mullens said. "We wish Mark and his family the best."
NOW READ: Top 8 Candidates To Replace Mark Helfrich
Oregon finished with a disappointing 4-8 mark, culminating in an embarrassing loss to Oregon State in the regular season finale. Helfrich, who took over the program in 2013 after Chip Kelly left for the NFL, led the Ducks to the national title game two years ago. However, Oregon went just 9-4 last year before this dismal season.
"It is a great honor to have served as the head football coach at the University of Oregon," Helfrich said. "It is with respect and disappointment that we receive this decision. Plain and simple — we didn't win enough games this season."
Helfrich finishes with a 37-16 record in his four seasons. However, many around the program felt that his success was largely due to the players Kelly had recruited, and the quick and steep drop off was due to his lack of recruiting/coaching prowess.
A USA Today report surfaced on Sunday that Oregon was preparing to fire Helfrich, but wanted to conduct an initial coaching search to see what coaches might be interested. Making the move now likely means the Ducks have a few targets in mind. Here is a list of the eight candidates they are the most likely to target.
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