UMass fires HC Don Brown during second stint with team

Don Brown made a name for himself as the defensive coordinator at Michigan from 2016-20. His defenses were known to be tough and aggressive, and his time in Ann Arbor earned him (another) shot at UMass as head coach. Brown had been head coach at UMass from 2004-08, so when he was hired by the Minutemen in November 2021, it was officially his second stint with the program.

Unfortunately, the second stint ended much differently than the first. The first time he left UMass, Maryland had paid a $25K buyout to steal him away to be the Terrapins' defensive coordinator. This was after he led UMass to the Atlantic 10 conference championship and an appearance in the FCS national title game.



This time around, after a 6-28 record with the Minutemen, Brown has been fired with two games left in the 2024 season. "I am extremely grateful to coach Brown for returning to UMass three years ago to help us build back a program he once coached to a national title game," Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford said in a statement . "Don should have immense pride in the outstanding contributions he has made to advance Massachusetts football during his three stops in Amherst.

Upon his return in 2021, we shared a common goal to help UMass football attain conference membership, something that was realized last spring. Largely due to his renowned coaching reputation, Don legitimized our FBS program and Massachusetts football has taken positive steps forward since his return. We are structurally positioned to accomplish our competitive goals as we move into a new league and a new college athletics landscape in 2025.

" UMass is 2-8 this season but the straw that broke the camel's back for Brown was, for some reason, the 35-34 overtime loss to Liberty in Amherst on Saturday. If Brown wants to coach college football in 2025, he'll likely be one of the top defensive coordinator candidates on the market..