Colorado named Karl Dorrell as the 27th full-time head coach of the Buffaloes on Sunday.
Dorrell, 56, had been the Miami Dolphins assistant head coach and wide receivers coach.
He replaces Mel Tucker, who resigned on Feb. 11 to become the coach at Michigan State.
Colorado athletic director Rick George has proposed a five-year deal worth $18 million to the school’s board of regents. The contract, if approved, includes a first-year salary of $3.2 million.
“I’m excited to be back, it’s like coming home,” said Dorrell, who previously served as the Buffs’ wide receivers coach from 1992-93 and as Colorado’s offensive coordinator and receivers coach from 1995-98.
“The thing that excited me about this job is that my experience in the past here for the most part has been very successful. We had a lot of good teams, went to a lot of good bowl games. It’s a top caliber program that has a lot of potential, and I’m excited to return it to that level.”
Dorrell has prior head coaching experience in the Pac-12, having guided his alma mater UCLA to a 35-27 record from 2003-07.
“I am excited that Karl Dorrell has agreed to become our head football coach,” George said in a school release. “Karl has had great success as a college coach, both as a head coach and an assistant, and he knows the Pac-12 Conference and West Coast well.
“It was important that our next coach have CU ties, and Karl has those ties having worked at CU twice previously. Karl shares my passion for Colorado and our vision for winning championships. He will be a tremendous mentor and role model for our student-athletes, and he will provide great leadership for our program going forward.”
Dorrell spent the 2019 season coaching the Dolphins’ wide receivers and was promoted to assistant head coach last week. It was his second stint in Miami, having previously coached the receivers (2008-10) and quarterbacks (2011).
Before that, he spent four seasons coaching receivers with the New York Jets (2015-18). He was the offensive coordinator at Vanderbilt in 2014 and the quarterbacks coach for the Houston Texans from 2012-13.
Colorado pursued Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian and Air Force coach Troy Calhoun during its search. Bieniemy, a former star running back for the school, and Sarkisian withdrew their names from consideration, according to multiple reports.
Former Wisconsin and Arkansas coach Bret Bielema and Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Greg Roman were also in the mix, according to reports.
Darrin Chiaverini has been serving as Colorado’s interim coach.
Dorrell played college football at UCLA and had 108 receptions for 1,517 yards and nine touchdowns from 1982-86.
