Miami’s Mark Richt retires as head coach after just three seasons

The Hurricanes finished the 2018 season with a 7-6 record.

Following an underwhelming season in which the Miami Hurricanes went 7-6 and ended their season with a loss in the Pinstripe Bowl, head coach Mark Richt announced he is retiring, effective immediately. The school confirmed reports on Sunday afternoon.

Dear Hurricane family:

A few hours ago, I informed UM Director of Athletics Blake James that it is time for me to retire from coaching so I am stepping down as the Head Coach of UM Football. The decision came after a great deal of thought, discussions with my family, and prayer. This was my decision.

The University of Miami has been a part of my life for more than three decades. It shaped me as a young man and provided me with the coaching opportunity of a lifetime. My love for The U is simply great. My true desire is for our football program to return to greatness, and while terribly difficult, I feel that stepping down is in the best interests of the program.

I want to express my sincere appreciation to the entire Hurricane Family for welcoming me back home and for supporting the outstanding young men in our program. I only wish that we could have achieved greater things in return. I also want to thank President Frenk and Blake for their incredible support, as well as the outstanding men and women in UM Athletics. Most importantly, I want to thank the incredible coaches, staff, and their families who gave their all to The U each and every day, and our student-athletes, who wore The U jersey with pride and who worked hard towards their degree.

Katharyn and I will be cheering on the Canes in the years to come and The U will never leave our hearts.

Sincerely,

Mark Richt

Now 58 years old, Richt was a power conference head coach for nearly two decades, serving 15 seasons at Georgia, then moving to Miami for his final three. His career ends with a 171-64 record.

His Georgia tenure was marked by consistency and almosts. The Bulldogs averaged just under 10 wins per year, won two SEC Championships and six SEC East titles, and finished in the AP top 10 seven times.

In 2002, his second year in Athens, the Dawgs finished 13-1 and won their first SEC title in 20 years. They fell short of the BCS Championship game only because two other teams finished unbeaten. Three years later, they won a second league crown, and in 2007 Georgia peaked with a second-place finish in the polls. He fielded his last great team in 2012, when the Dawgs finished just a few yards short of the BCS Championship in a 32-28 loss to eventual national champion Alabama.

There was a downward trend in his final few seasons. Georgia again finished in the top 10 in 2014, but a series of recruiting losses, and an in ability to get over the Alabama hump, led to discontent. He was fired after going 9-3 in 2015.

There was no rest period. Soon after he left Georgia, he was hired by his alma mater, Miami. After a 4-4 start in 2016, the Hurricanes won 15 games in a row, going 10-0 to begin 2017 and peaking at second in the College Football Playoff ranking. They lost their last three games of the season, however, and went just 7-6 this past season. He was facing pressure to make major changes to his offensive staff.

Richt attended Miami at the beginning of the Howard Schnellenberger era, throwing for 1,431 yards over parts of four seasons. He joined Bobby Bowden’s staff at Florida State in 1985, eventually moving into the offensive coordinator role in 1994. With Richt calling the plays, the Seminoles won their second national title in 1999.