Tulsa, OK (SportsNetwork.com) - Tulsa fired head football coach Bill Blankenship on Monday, three days after the Golden Hurricane concluded a 2-10 season.
The Golden Hurricane were dealt their first campaign with double-digit losses since 2002 with Friday's 49-32 setback to East Carolina. The poor showing came on the heels of a 3-9 season in 2013, a year Tulsa was picked to win the West Division of Conference USA during the preseason.
"We are grateful for the service and commitment of Coach Blankenship to our university, our student-athletes and our community, but we have decided that the program needs to go in a different direction," Tulsa athletic director Derrick Gragg said in a statement.
Blankenship, a former Tulsa quarterback, went 19-8 and led the program to the 2012 Conference USA title over his first two seasons after succeeding Todd Graham as head coach. The Golden Hurricane finished a disappointing 2-6 in league play in their final season in Conference USA, however, and were near the bottom of the standings in their inaugural year in the American Athletic Conference.
Over four seasons overall at his alma mater, Blankenship compiled a 24-27 record. He was named Conference USA's Coach of the Year in 2012.
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