DENVER — The Steve Addazio era is over. According to multiple reports the veteran head coach was relieved of his duties on Thursday morning after just two seasons at Colorado State.

Addazio went 4-12 in the 16 games that he was in charge of the program but it was a tumultuous ride from the start. Being fair to him, it was a difficult situation taking over a program right at the beginning of the pandemic. The 2020 investigation into the coaching conduct didn’t do him any favors either, though one could argue it was a sign things weren’t ever going to go smoothly with him at the helm. 

With the buyout dipping from $5 million to $3 million on Dec. 2, most Ram fans hoped that the CSU administration would be willing to cut ties with ‘the dude’. However, considering the cost, many feared it would be too steep for a Mountain West program. After ending the 2021 season on a six game losing streak, including getting throttled by Air Force and Wyoming, and then becoming just the second FBS coach in history to be ejected for multiple unsportsmanlike conduct penalties against Nevada, though, the national embarrassment was simply too much to ignore. 

At this point CSU has not yet officially announced that Addazio is being let go but it’s expected to happen at some point early Thursday afternoon. According to Kevin Lytle of the Coloradoan, Joe Parker is meeting with the team at 11 am MT to update the players on the situation. One would assume the announcement will come shortly after. 

As far as candidates for the opening go, the obvious include Tony Alford (Ohio State) and Matt Lubick (Formerly of Nebraska). Although unlikely, the return of Jim McElwain (Central Michigan) would likely be celebrated as well. The one thing that seems certain is that Urban Meyer won’t be involved this time.