Head coach Mike Jinks has been fired by Bowling Green, per a press release sent by the Falcons’ athletic department on Sunday afternoon. Defensive coordinator Carl Pelini has been announced as the interim coach. Jinks’ firing marks the first removal of an FBS head coach this season. This news comes less than 24 hours after Bowling Green squandered a 14-point lead to Western Michigan, losing 42-35 to the Broncos at home. The loss set Bowling Green to 1-6 this season, with the lone victory occurring by seven points against Eastern Kentucky of the FCS. In about 2.5 seasons manning the sidelines, Jinks finished with a 7-24 record as head coach. The former Texas Tech running backs coach took over prior to the 2016 season, serving as the successor to current Syracuse head coach Dino Babers. He inherited a reigning MAC champion squad and a program that won three-consecutive East division titles. However, this success was not sustained. The Falcons finished 4-8 in Jinks’ first season in 2016, following that up with a 2-10 finish in 2017. Bowling Green particularly struggled early in the season, and Jinks failed to beat a single FBS team in the month of September — faring 0-11. Under Jinks, Bowling Green failed to defeat a non-conference opponent in the FBS. The program also hasn’t topped a team with a .500 or better record since 2015. One primary reason the Falcons failed to improve under Jinks was a defense that allowed an astronomically number of yards and points on a week-to-week basis. Currently the worst rushing defense in the entire FBS, Bowling Green ranked 118th in points per game defense in 2016, 123rd in 2017, and is 129th this season. The ugliest loss of the Jinks era was a 77-3 shellacking from Memphis in September 2016. Jinks will be replaced by Pelini, who served as the Florida Atlantic coach from 2012-13. He is the older brother of former Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini. Carl joined the Falcons staff this offseason after fulfilling defensive coordinator duties at Youngstown State — where Bo is currently coaching. Pelini’s first game as head coach will occur at Peden Stadium next week as Bowling Green will battle Ohio.<doc-sep>Bowling Green head coach Mike Jinks looks on against Northwestern during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Evanston, Ill., Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017. (AP Photo/Matt Marton) The first head coach firing of the season has come from Bowling Green. The school announced Sunday that it has fired Mike Jinks. Jinks was in his third season as the Falcons’ head coach. Under his watch, the program was just 7-24 after dropping to 1-6 with a loss to Western Michigan on Saturday. “I want to thank Coach Jinks for all of his efforts with our football program and in the BG community. However, we felt it was time to make a change in leadership,” athletic director Bob Moosbrugger said in a statement. “These are not easy decisions and we do not take this lightly. This affects 11 coaching families, 112 student-athletes and numerous support staff. We wish Mike and his family the best in their future endeavors. Defensive coordinator Carl Pelini (yes, that Carl Pelini) will serve as the team’s interim head coach. Pelini, the older brother of former Nebraska and current Youngstown State head coach Bo Pelini, was previously the head coach at Florida Atlantic before his short tenure came to a rather tumultuous ending. “We have a talented group of hard working student-athletes and I look forward to the program finishing the season strong playing for the senior class under the leadership of Coach Pelini,” Moosbrugger said. Pelini is in his first year at Bowling Green following three seasons on his brother’s staff at Youngstown State. Under Jinks, Bowling Green declined rapidly Before Jinks was hired, Bowling Green won at least eight games in four consecutive seasons under Dave Clawson (now at Wake Forest) and then Dino Babers (now at Syracuse). When Babers left, Jinks was brought in after a three-year stint as an assistant under Kliff Kingsbury at Texas Tech. Jinks’ role as a position coach for the Red Raiders was his first collegiate coaching gig. Before that, he was a high school head coach in Texas from 2005-2012 and a high school assistant dating back to the mid-’90s. The decision to bring Jinks from Texas to Ohio was deemed a curious one. From the Toledo Blade: Story continues The Falcons’ hiring of Jinks was a puzzling one from the outset, even in many coaching circles. Jinks was a successful Texas high school coach who made the move to college as an assistant at Texas Tech. Jinks was the running backs coach for three seasons at Texas Tech, and BG hired him despite the fact he never had been to Ohio before accepting the job. Once he arrived at Bowling Green, the program could not maintain its status as a MAC contender. In fact, the Falcons declined quickly, going 4-8 in his first season and 2-10 in his second season. After starting 2018 with a 1-6 mark, the school decided it was time to go in another direction. “Our football program has been a source of pride for our alumni and fans. We need football to be successful to help our entire athletics department and University. We are committed to excellence on the field and in the classroom,” Moosbrugger said. More from Yahoo Sports: • 4 teams jump out in College Football Playoff race • Sources: No Curry suspension after near altercation • Pat Forde: Takeaways from chaos-filled day in college football • Report: Hernandez was ‘sexually molested as a young boy’<doc-sep>Bowling Green announced that coach Mike Jinks has been relieved of his duties following a 1-6 start to the 2018 season. The 46-year-old was in the middle of his third year as the coach of the Falcons. Defensive coordinator Carl Pelini will take over the program on an interim basis. "I want to thank Coach Jinks for all of his efforts with our football program and in the BG community," athletics director Bob Moosbrugger said. "However, we felt it was time to make a change in leadership. These are not easy decisions and we do not take this lightly. This affects 11 coaching families, 112 student-athletes and numerous support staff. We wish Mike and his family the best in their future endeavors." Jinks was 7-24 in two-and-a-half seasons at Bowling Green. He took over prior to the 2016 season after Dino Babers left to take over at Syracuse. "We have a talented group of hard working student-athletes and I look forward to the program finishing the season strong playing for the senior class under the leadership of Coach Pelini," Moosbrugger said. "Our football program has been a source of pride for our alumni and fans," Moosbrugger added. "We need football to be successful to help our entire athletics department and University. We are committed to excellence on the field and in the classroom." Pelini is back as a head coach for now, after resigning in the middle of his second season at FAU after admitting to "illegal drug use." He was 5-15 in two seasons as the head coach in Boca Raton. Pelini's first game as the Falcons head coach will be Saturday afternoon at Ohio.<doc-sep>
The first FBS head coach firing of the 2018 college football season has transpired. Bowling Green State University announced the firing of football coach Mike Jinks on Sunday. The Falcons opened the season 1-2 before losing four straight games, culminating with a 42-35 loss to Western Michigan on Saturday. "I want to thank Coach Jinks for all of his efforts with our football program and in the BG community," Bowling Green State University Director of Athletics Bob Moosbrugger said in a statement. "However, we felt it was time to make a change in leadership. These are not easy decisions and we do not take this lightly. This affects 11 coaching families, 112 student-athletes and numerous support staff. We wish Mike and his family the best in their future endeavors." Bowling Green defensive coordinator Carl Pelini will be the interim coach for the remainder of the season. Moosbrugger will immediately begin the search for a replacement head coach. "We have a talented group of hard working student-athletes and I look forward to the program finishing the season strong playing for the senior class under under the leadership of Coach Pelini," Moosbrugger said. "Our football program has been a source of pride for alumni and fans. We need football to be successful to help our entire athletics department and University. We are committed to excellence on the field and in the classroom." Jinks was hired to serve as the Bowling Green coach in December 2015, as he replaced Dino Babers who left for the head coaching job at Syracuse. The Falcons went 18-9 in two seasons under Babers, including a 10-3 campaign in 2015 which featured a Mid-American Conference (MAC) championship. The success did not continue under Jinks, though. Bowling Green went 4-8 in 2016 before a 2-10 season last year. A 1-6 start this season ultimately led to Bowling Green's decision to fire Jinks, who got his first opportunity to be a head coach at the college level with the Falcons. The coach leaves Bowling Green with a 7-24 record, including a 5-14 mark in conference play. Prior to joining the Falcons, Jinks was on the staff at Texas Tech. From 2013-14, he was the running backs coach for the Red Raiders. Jinks added associate head coach to his title with Texas Tech prior to the 2015 season, and then he accepted the job with Bowling Green. Jinks got his start in 1996, coaching at the high school level in Texas. Jinks became the head coach at Steele High School (Cibolo, Texas) in 2006, and he remained there until 2013, when Kliff Kingsbury hired him at Texas Tech. In its first game without Jinks at the helm, Bowling Green will travel on the road to face Ohio (3-3) on Saturday. The game from Peden Stadium is scheduled to kick off at 2 p.m. ET.