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Holgorsen staying on as head coach, WVU AD says

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West Virginia University football coach Dana Holgorsen will get at least one more year to right the ship of the football program.

In 2013, WVU suffered its first losing season since 2001, posting a 4-8 record. It was Holgorsen’s third year in charge of the program.

WVU Director of Athletics Oliver Luck acknowledged the program needs work to get back to a winning level.

“We simply must get better,” Luck said in a prepared statement released to the press Tuesday.

Following a 10-3 year in his first campaign, which ended in an Orange Bowl victory, Holgorsen’s tenure at WVU has been turbulent.

Holgorsen has posted a 11-14 record in the last two years, the school’s first two in the Big 12 conference.

The following is Oliver Luck’s full statement:

“First, I want to thank all Mountaineer fans who supported our football team through a difficult and trying season.  Though there were some high points this year, including our upset victory over No. 11 Oklahoma State and the inspired play from many first year student-athletes, there were far too many disappointments. 
 
We have high expectations at West Virginia University for success on and off the field and as Coach Holgorsen has acknowledged to me, we are not meeting those expectations on the field.  Coach Holgorsen and I met at length and reviewed this past season.  We discussed the coaching staff, recruiting, player development, strength and conditioning, academic support, facilities, in short, all the components that make up a successful program.  We are working diligently to improve our capabilities in all of these areas.
 
I strongly believe in our coaching staff, including the work that our strength and conditioning staff is doing.  In my opinion, continuity is the key ingredient that will bring our football program back to the high level that Mountaineer fans expect.
 
We had plenty of challenges this season; nonetheless, we should not and will not use those as excuses for our performance. We simply must get better.
 
Coach Holgorsen and his staff are on the road recruiting this week, securing the future for a successful Mountaineer football program.  We need to do our part as well by continuing to move forward with the facility improvements needed to compete at the highest level in our conference.
 
We have high expectations for the 2014 football team, and I have shared those with Coach Holgorsen.  He and his staff are eager to get started to prepare for our opening game against Alabama.  We are well aware that we have a lot of work to do. 
 
We have tremendous student-athletes in our program and a very accomplished core of coaches who want to bring championships back to West Virginia University.  We will do all we can to help them in that endeavor, and I ask for your continued support as we move forward to a brighter future.”