SYRACUSE, N.Y. — After posting a 3-9 record in the 2025 season, Syracuse University football head coach Fran Brown has parted ways with four assistant coaches.
Ricky Brumfield, Joe Schaefer, Dale Williams, and Robert Wright will not be retained for the 2026 season, Brown announced Tuesday.
Brumfield served as the special teams coordinator, Schaefer coached the defensive backs, Williams oversaw the offensive line, and Wright served as co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.
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“I want to thank Ricky, Joe, Dale and Robert for their dedication to Syracuse University, our program and players,” Brown said in the announcement. “I wish them nothing but the best moving forward.”
Additionally, Elijah Robinson will transition to a new role as co-defensive coordinator and defensive-line coach.
After starting the season 3-1, the Orange lost 8 consecutive football games following the loss of starting quarterback Steve Angeli to a season-ending, torn Achilles tendon injury in SU’s upset victory at Clemson on Sept. 20.
“The results this season were not reflective of the high standards I have for our program,” Brown, a second-year head coach, said. “After carefully evaluating our entire organization, I made the difficult decision to seek new leadership for some units of our football team. These are the changes needed for our goals of competing for championships at Syracuse.”
The Orange dropped its 2025 season opener to Tennessee, 45-26, in the Aflac Kickoff Game in Atlanta before rallying to top Connecticut in overtime and defeating Colgate and Clemson in consecutive weeks. The Clemson upset was SU’s final win of the 2025 season.
The team lost its final eight games and was outscored 309-89 over that stretch, including a 70-7 loss at Notre Dame, representing its worst defeat since a 66-0 loss to Union in 1893.
The 2025 results were a far cry from Syracuse football’s 2024 season, Brown’s first, when the team compiled a 9-3 record in the regular season. The Orange capped off that year with a 52-35 victory over Washington State in the Holiday Bowl, for a 10-3 final record.
