Massachusetts coach Charley Molnar, who was 2-22 in two seasons as the Minutemen coach, was fired Thursday, the school announced.
Molnar won one game in each of his two seasons at UMass, which moved to the FBS ranks before the 2012 season. Molnar, 52, previously served as offensive coordinator at Notre Dame.
The that the decision to fire Molnar was made before Christmas and that athletic director John McCutcheon let Molnar -- who had three years remaining on his contract -- know Thursday morning. In addition, Malone reported that Molnar's buyout is coming from an outside source.
The findings of a UMass investigation into Molnar's coaching techniques -- which were the subject of controversy after a video produced by the UMass video staff showed players engaging in hand-to-hand combat during offseason training sessions -- also is believed to have played a role in his firing.
UMass is the fourth MAC team to change coaches since the start of the season. Eastern Michigan and Miami (Ohio) also fired their coaches, and Bowling Green lost Dave Clawson to Wake Forest.
Molnar walked into a tough situation. UMass had had pockets of success, including a runner-up finish in the 2006 FCS playoffs under current Boston College defensive coordinator Don Brown, but looked ill-prepared for the move to the FBS ranks. For the past two seasons, UMass has played its home games at Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots but also about 100 miles from UMass' campus in Amherst. The school is renovating its on-campus stadium, but still is contracted to play at least four games per season at Gillette through 2016.
Boston College's move to the ACC has made recruiting more difficult for UMass, which has no natural rival in the MAC and is located a long way from the rest of its conference opponents.
Speculation on a replacement likely will center on Brown. In addition, coachingsearch.com said Philadelphia Eagles outside linebackers coach Bill McGovern and Oakland Raiders quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo could become candidates. McGovern is a former longtime Boston College assistant in his first season with the Eagles.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.