Briles fired as coach at Baylor

In this Oct. 10, 2015, file photo, Baylor head coach Art Briles watches during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Kansas in Lawrence, Kan. Baylor University's board of regents says it will fire Briles and re-assign university President Kenneth Starr in response to questions about its handling of sexual assault complaints against players.  The university said in a statement Thursday, May 26, 2016, that it had suspended Briles "with intent to terminate."  Starr will leave the position of president on May 31, but the school says he will serve as chancellor.
In this Oct. 10, 2015, file photo, Baylor head coach Art Briles watches during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Kansas in Lawrence, Kan. Baylor University's board of regents says it will fire Briles and re-assign university President Kenneth Starr in response to questions about its handling of sexual assault complaints against players. The university said in a statement Thursday, May 26, 2016, that it had suspended Briles "with intent to terminate." Starr will leave the position of president on May 31, but the school says he will serve as chancellor.

Art Briles, who helped turn Baylor University's football team into a national power, has been dismissed as head coach of the Bears, sources have told ESPN.

The school was expected to formally make the announcement today.

Players were notified of the news via a text message from Briles, a source told ESPN's Brett McMurphy.

Briles had a 65-37 record in eight seasons, transforming one of the worst FBS programs in the country-the team had 12 consecutive losing seasons before he was hired in 2008-into a national title contender.

Baylor president Ken Starr and Briles have faced sharp criticism about whether Baylor ignored allegations of assaults by players, two of whom were later convicted of sexual assault.

Starr has been Baylor president since 2010. He was the special prosecutor who investigated President Bill Clinton's sexual relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky.

The school hired Pepper Hamilton in 2015 for the internal review. Regents were given a private presentation of some of the firm's findings earlier this month, but those details have not been made public. Baylor is the nation's largest Baptist university.

Speculation that regents will fire any Baylor officials had focused on Starr, not Briles.

The Bears have won two Big 12 championships since 2013, a wave of success that reaped financial rewards as well. In 2014, Baylor opened a new state-of-the-art football stadium on campus.

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