Just days after he was placed on administrative leave, Kansas and football coach Les Miles agreed to part ways, the school announced late Monday night.
Offensive coordinator Mike DeBord, who was named as acting coach Friday when Miles was put on leave, will remain acting head coach until an interim coach is hired.
The scandal surrounding Miles, who was the head coach at LSU for 12 seasons, erupted amid reports last week that a former athletic director in Baton Rouge urged the school to fire him in 2013. Allegations surfaced that Miles made sexual advances toward female students and also made comments about women in the athletic department that were sexist or insulting.
Kansas athletic director Jeff Long said in a statement Friday that the school would “fully review the material” emerging from the reports about Miles at LSU. Long said he did “not want to speculate on a timeline for our review because it is imperative we do our due diligence.”
On Monday, Long said he was “extremely disappointed for our university, fans and everyone involved with our football program. There is a lot of young talent on this football team, and I have no doubt we will identify the right individual to lead this program.
“We will begin the search for a new head coach immediately with an outside firm to assist in this process. We need to win football games, and that is exactly what we’re going to do.”
In a statement issued by Kansas, Miles said, “This is certainly a difficult day for me and for my family. I love this university and the young men in our football program. I have truly enjoyed being the head coach at KU and know that it is in a better place now than when I arrived. To our student-athletes, I want you to remember that you came to play for KU and earn a degree here. So, I implore you to stay and build on what we started and do all of the things we talked about doing together. There is a bright future for all of you and for KU Football.”
Miles, who had a 114-34 record at LSU, was only 3-18 at Kansas, including an 0-9 mark in 2020.
An outside law firm that was tasked with reviewing how LSU handled allegations of sexual misconduct involving the coach and female students working in the department was critical of the school.
“The issue is whether the University responded to this report against (Les Miles) in a manner consistent with then-existing legal guidance, well-recognized best practices, and institutional policy. The answer is ‘no,'” the investigation concluded.
