Mike London resigns as football coach at Virginia

ByMatt Fortuna ESPN logo
Sunday, November 29, 2015

Mike London resigned as the football coach of the Virginia Cavaliers on Sunday after meeting with athletic director Craig Littlepage, the school announced.

"We expect our football program to compete for the Coastal Division title on an annual basis, which puts us in a position to win the ACC championship and be competitive nationally," Littlepage said in a statement. "This is consistent with the expectations for each of our sport programs."

London, whose contract was set to expire after the 2016 season, went 27-46 in six seasons at Virginia. He will receive approximately $2.7 million after reaching a financial agreement with the university.

"I appreciate the opportunity to have been the head football coach at the University of Virginia and for the relationships that have been formed during my time in Charlottesville that will last for years to come," London said in a statement. "I took this job to make a profound difference in the lives of young men and to re-establish Virginia football as one of the best programs in the ACC.

"While we were successful in the development of our players in many areas, I would have liked to have won more games for the student-athletes, coaches, fans and everyone that's a part of the University of Virginia."

London took the Cavaliers to just one bowl game, in 2011, when he was named the ACC Coach of the Year. He went 14-34 in ACC play during his tenure.

Virginia went 4-8 this season, capped Saturday by a23-20 loss to Virginia Tech. It was the Cavaliers' 12th straight loss to their rival. The Hoos were 3-5 in ACC play.

Littlepage did not specify a timeframe for UVA's coaching search.

"Mike London has been an outstanding representative of the University of Virginia," Littlepage said in a release. "During his tenure, Mike created a positive culture for our student-athletes to develop as young men, who improved each year in the classroom and represented us very well in the community."