Not even two seasons into his time at Florida Atlantic, head coach Tom Herman was fired, the school announcement Monday.

The former Texas and Houston head coach will finish his time in Boca Raton with a 6-16 record. FAU will owe a $4.1 million buyout to Herman.

Owls special teams coordinator Chad Lunsford will assume the role of interim head coach.

FAU Athletic Director Brian White said the following in a statement:

“I express my gratitude to Tom Herman for his dedication to our university and our student-athletes. I informed Tom of my decision this morning and then met with the staff and team. We strongly believe in our ability to win championships and compete for bowling games, and that remains our standard.

By On3 Pete NakosHerman was already looking for a job as a coordinator at Power Conference schools in recent weeks.

Prior to Herman’s time with the Owls, he was an offensive analyst for the Chicago Bears and, in the college ranks, he was previously a head coach at Houston and Texas. He also served as offensive coordinator at Ohio State, Iowa State, Rice, Texas State and wide receivers coach at Sam Houston State.

Herman was hired ahead of the 2023 season. His big win that season was against the University of South Florida by a final score of 56-14. This season, Herman’s big win came against the FIU Panthers in the Shula Bowl by a final score of 38-20. The win against the Panthers was its only FBS victory in 2024.

Florida Atlantic is scheduled to face Charlotte and Tulsa to conclude the regular season. The best-case scenario for the Owls envisions a 4-8 season again, the same scorer Herman led them to in 2023.

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