Rutgers fires Ash after 8 wins in 3-plus seasons

1:47 PM ET

Rutgers has fired coach Chris Ash following the Scarlet Knights’ 1-3 start, the school announced Sunday.

“We appreciate Chris’ dedicated efforts on behalf of our football program, our department and our university,” athletic director Pat Hobbs said in a statement.

Tight ends coach Nunzio Campanile will serve as the interim head coach for the remainder of 2019. Campanile is in his second year on Rutgers’ staff after serving as head coach of in-state powerhouse Bergen Catholic High School.

Ash’s tenure ends after a 52-0 loss to Michigan on Saturday, marking Rutgers’ 14th straight loss in the Big Ten. He went 8-32 in three-plus seasons at the school, never winning more than four games in a season, and 3-26 in Big Ten play with two winless seasons in conference games.

Rutgers was his first head-coaching job following 16 seasons as an assistant at Iowa State, San Diego State, Wisconsin, Arkansas and Ohio State. Ash, 45, had most recently served as Ohio State’s defensive coordinator and helped the Buckeyes to the national championship in 2014.

“This change is especially difficult because of the steadfast commitment that Chris and his family have made to our student-athletes,” Hobbs said. “Progress has been achieved in many areas, but, unfortunately, that progress has not been realized on the field of play. As such, it is in the best interest of the program to make a change.”

In late 2017, Rutgers extended Ash’s contract through the 2022 season, awarding him an additional $5.1 million in compensation. NJ.com reported that Rutgers was contractually obligated to extend Ash because of NCAA sanctions placed on the program, stemming from his predecessor, Kyle Flood.

Rutgers went 8-5 in its Big Ten debut season of 2014 but hasn’t won more than four games since. Former Rutgers coach Greg Schiano, who went 68-67 in 11 seasons and led the Scarlet Knights to six bowl appearances, could be a leading candidate to return. Schiano spent the past three seasons as Ohio State’s defensive coordinator and briefly joined the New England Patriots’ staff earlier this year before stepping down.

Other potential candidates include Texas A&M defensive coordinator Mike Elko, Army coach Jeff Monken, former Tennessee coach Butch Jones and Michigan linebackers coach Anthony Campanile.