'Stuck in Neutral': What Led To Jimbo Fisher's Firing At Texas A&M?
COLLEGE STATION -- The decision had been made well before Texas A&M took the field Saturday night in Aggieland. Win or lose, athletic director Ross Bjork knew change would be coming to Kyle Field Sunday morning.
As Bjork watched Jimbo Fisher's squad march up and down the field en route to a 51-10 win over Mississippi State, he knew the coming days would present its own challenges, but ones needed for the program to get back on track. Even if the Aggies were to finish the year on a three-game winning streak, the fifth-year athletic director had already decided on the program's future.
A future that no longer featured Fisher.
“Our program is stuck in neutral,” Bjork said Sunday evening following Fisher's dismissal. “We should be relevant on the national scene. Something is not clicking. Something is not working, and therefore, something had to give in order for Aggie football to reach our full potential.”
Fisher, who left Florida State in 2017 to bring championships to College Station, never could reach the end goal during his six seasons in Aggieland. Following Saturday's bowl-clinching win, he mentioned the Aggies were "three or four plays away from being in a playoff spot."
Those same plays ultimately led to Bjork's decision to make a switch in leadership. Following the Aggies' 38-35 loss to then-No. 10 Ole Miss in Oxford, Bjork said he reached out to interim A&M president Mark Welsh and A&M chancellor John Sharp to discuss the process of firing Fisher.
On Sunday, just before 9 a.m., Bjork and Welsh met with Fisher inside Kyle Field to inform him they were making an immediate change. Bjork said the meeting was “quick and cordial.”
"There was something just not clicking to provide confidence for everyone in the program," Bjork said. "You have to adapt, you have to evolve. I'm not going to say whether [Fisher] did or didn't, but it didn't work."
A&M also dismissed Mark Robinson, Fisher's associate athletics director for football. Defensive line coach Elijah Robinson will serve as the interim coach for the Aggies' final two regular season games and the bowl game. Coordinators Bobby Petrino and D.J. Durkin will continue their roles for the remainder of the season.
"I expect them to really rally around coach Robinson and finish the season strong," Bjork said.
Fisher, who finished his tenure at A&M with a 45-25 record, never led the Aggies to a conference title or a 10-win season. The Aggies' best season under Fisher came in 2020 when they finished 9-1 with an Orange Bowl win over North Carolina and a No. 4 ranking in the Coaches Poll.
The dismissal is expected to cost A&M over $76 million, nearly triple the amount of the largest buyout for a college football coach in league history. Fisher, who initially agreed a 10-year, $75 million contract in December 2017, signed a contract extension in 2021 that bumped his annual salary from $7.5 million to more than $9 million.
Per Fisher's contract, he is owed $19.2 million within 60 days and then $7.2 annually through 2031.
Texas A&M Aggies head coach Jimbo Fisher reacts after a play during the fourth quarter against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Kyle Field.
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
"Let me be very clear in this next part: Texas A&M athletics and the 12th Man Foundation will be the sole sources of the necessary funds covering these transition costs," said Bjork. "We will use unrestricted contributions within the 12th Man Foundation for the first one-time payments, and the athletic department will fund the remaining payments for the remaining portion by growing our revenues and adjusting our annual operating budget accordingly."
Bjork took responsibility for the extension, stating it was the right decision at the time. Fisher, who was hired by current LSU AD Scott Woodward, was rumored to be the top candidate in place of Ed Orgeron.
"Clearly it didn't work out," said Bjork. "We're going to learn from that and make sure that we don't make those same mistakes again."
The search for A&M's 30th head coach is already underway. Early names linked to the opening include Oregon coach Dan Lanning, UTSA coach Jeff Traylor, Kansas coach Lance Leipold, Georgia defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann, and Duke coach Mike Elko, among others.
Elko, considered a favorite among those close to the program, spent four seasons as A&M's defensive coordinator under Fisher before taking the Blue Devils’ job following the 2021 season. In two years with the ACC program, he's posted a 15-8 record, including winning ACC Coach of the Year last fall.
Bjork said he hopes to have Fisher's replacement within the next month, though that is subject to change due to potential candidates remaining schedules. Traits for what he's looking for in the next coach, however, are set in stone.
Bjork said qualifications included: someone who has a program identity, excellent interpersonal skills, a track record of player development, commitment to academics, and a strong recruiter with strong organizational skills. The hope would be to have them on campus before the transfer portal window opens on Dec. 4 and before Early Signing Period comes to a close.
"It's not ideal," Bjork said. "But also not unique in the modern day of college football, especially given [the] transfer portal world, signing day, and all those dynamics that played into it."
While change will come to the helm, nothing is expected to differ from A&M's goals. Bjork believes the Aggies can still be national title contenders.
All that's missing is the centerpiece.
"The ingredients for a championship are here," Bjork said. "Aggies want to do it the right way, and deserve excellence in everything that we do."
