COLLEGE PARK, Md. – DJ Durkin's return as Maryland's football coach lasted one day.
Durkin was fired Wednesday evening, just over 24 hours after being reinstated by the school.
Instead of resolving the issues facing the flawed program, the decision by the University System of Maryland board of regents Tuesday to retain Durkin and athletic director Damon Evans created a different set of problems in the wake of a player's death and discontent engulfing the football team.
Several state officials called for Durkin to be fired, and one called the decision to retain him an "embarrassment."
Maryland President Wallace Loh fired Durkin after conferring with the leadership of the Student Government Association, the Senate Executive Committee, deans, department chairs and campus leadership.
"The overwhelming majority of stakeholders expressed serious concerns about Coach DJ Durkin returning to the campus," Loh said.
"The chair of the Board of Regents has publicly acknowledged that I had previously raised serious concerns about Coach Durkin's return. This is not at all a reflection of my opinion of Coach Durkin as a person. However, a departure is in the best interest of the University, and this afternoon Coach Durkin was informed that the University will part ways," Loh wrote. "This is a difficult decision, but it is the right one for our entire University."
Durkin's dismissal comes while he was in the third season of a five-year, $12.5 million contract he signed in December 2015. He will be owed about $5.5 million, according to buyout terms of his contract.
