Ball State officials will hold a press conference today to discuss the removal of Bill Lynch as head football coach, a decision they announced Monday.
The press conference will be held at 9 a.m. in the Worthen Arena. Lynch will be reassigned within the university for the final year of his contract, Bubba Cunningham, the university's athletic director, said.
The announcement came on the heels of Ball State's final football game of the season: a 38-14 loss at the hands of Marshall University. The loss brought Ball State's season record to 6-6. Lynch's record during his eight-year stint at Ball State was 37-53.
Attempts to reach Lynch at his home and office were unsuccessful.
Cunningham, who had the final decision in the coaching change, took over as athletic director this summer after former AD Andrea Seger retired. At the end of last season, Seger rewarded Lynch with her highest praise and a contract extension for meeting what she referred to as "the goal we set for the program." Lynch earned a one-year extension that is set to expire on Jan. 31, 2004. The athletic department did not specify where the Butler graduate would be reassigned for the remainder of his contract.
Both Cunningham and Lynch addressed the team at a closed meeting Monday afternoon -- the first time the team had been informed of the decision. Junior wide receiver Talmadge Hill said that all the players had heard by the time the meeting came around, though.
Hill said that in the meeting, Cunningham explained the reasoning behind his decision and also took questions. Cunningham also told the players they could come to him if they had further questions or complaints, but refused to comment after the meeting.
Senior tailback Marcus Merriweather said Lynch then addressed the team but didn't dwell on the announcement of his firing. The 13-year head coach thanked the players and his coaching staff, then encouraged the players to continue to represent the university well.
"He wanted everybody to remember the good times and how much we gelled over the years," Merriweather said.
Offensive coordinator Rich Spisak said he first received the news of Lynch's firing around 6:30 a.m. on his way to Chicago for a recruiting trip. Spisak said Lynch called him when he was about an hour and a half from the university, prompting him to turn and come back to Muncie.
"I went to bed with a job and woke up without one," Spisak said. "So it still hasn't sunk in."
The assistant coaches weren't officially dismissed, but Spisak said the assistant coaches are tied to the head coach.
"If he's released, we're technically released until the new man's hired," Spisak said. "Most guys are going to bring in their own people. Your future is kind of up in the air at this point."
Spisak said new coaches sometimes retain one or two coaches from the old staff, but often no coaches are kept. He said it is too early to say what Lynch or the assistant coaches will be doing next year or even for the remainder of this year.
Cunningham said Lynch has brought good students to Ball State and has taken an active role in the athletes' development as students, but he was less than pleased with what Lynch has accomplished in his role as coach.
"We also expect to excel on the field," Cunningham said. "In football we have not achieved the success we had hoped we would."
Lynch has compiled a 73-65-3 head coaching record, including a 36-12-3 record in 5 years at Butler University. Lynch has a wife and four children. His son Joey is a member of Ball State's football team.
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