Hatfield resigns after 12 years as head football coach

Hatfield resigns after 12 years as head football coach

BY ARIE WILSON
Rice News staff

Ken Hatfield, head football coach at Rice, announced his resignation Nov. 30 during an afternoon press conference in the Owl Club at Rice Stadium.

Ken Hatfield

“I have enjoyed untold moments and memories through the game of football,” Hatfield said. “Sandy [his wife] and I are so honored to have been here for 12 years.”

Rice Athletic Director Bobby May said the decision to leave was Hatfield’s own and related discussions were “amicable, never adversarial.” May thanked Hatfield for “representing himself well and surrounding himself with coaches and student athletes with impeccable character.”

“[Hatfield] is a remarkable individual — revered and an inspiration for his players,” May said. “When measuring a program’s success we sometimes forget that it is more than accumulating [wins]. Successful programs build character, develop leadership skills and prepare students for life after athletics — Ken has done that and much more.”

Hatfield, a native of Helena, Ark., came to Rice after stints at the U.S. Air Force Academy, the University of Arkansas–Fayetteville and Clemson University. At the end of the 2005 season, he was fifth among active Division I-A coaches with
168 career victories.

Hatfield’s record as Rice head coach was 55-78-1, including 7-4 seasons in 1997 and 1998 and an 8-4 mark in 2001. Rice lost 14 straight games over the 2004-05 seasons, ending what had been the nation’s longest Division I-A losing streak with a 42-34 win over Tulane Nov. 12. The Owls finished the season 1-10 and averaged 10,072 fans at its five home games, an all-time low in 56 seasons.

May said the search for a new coach will begin immediately.