Tampa, FL (Sports Network) - The University of South Florida has fired head football coach Skip Holtz after three seasons, according to multiple reports.
The Bulls just completed their worst season in the program's 16-year history with Saturday's 27-3 home loss at Pittsburgh. The defeat was USF's 14th in its last 16 Big East Conference games and ninth in 10 overall outings following a 2-0 start, which left the team with a 3-9 record.
Holtz compiled a 16-21 record during his tenure at South Florida, which hired the 48-year-old in January of 2010 following a successful five-year stint with East Carolina. The Bulls went 8-5 and earned a win in the Meineke Car Care Bowl during his first season in charge, but failed to reach the postseason after slipping to a 5-7 mark in 2011.
The Bulls were just 5-16 in Big East play over his three seasons.
According to the Tampa Tribune, Holtz was under contract through the 2017 season after receiving a three-year extension in July. He will receive a $2.5 million buyout from the university, paid in installments of $500,000 over a five-year period.
Holtz owns an overall record of 88-71 as a head coach, having gone 34-23 in five seasons at Connecticut from 1994-98 and 38-27 over a five-year period at East Carolina from 2005-09 prior to his arrival in Tampa. He also spent six years as an assistant under his father, Lou, at South Carolina between 1999-2004.
While at ECU, Holtz's teams made four consecutive bowl appearances from 2006-09 and captured back-to-back Conference USA championships over those final two seasons.
