Ross Bjork on dismissing Jimbo Fisher: I determined our program is stuck in neutral
Following the dismissal of Jimbo Fisher as head coach of the Texas A&M program, Aggies athletics director Ross Bjork met with the media to discuss the change and what prompted it.
In Bjork’s words, the program was essentially stuck in the mud.
“I determined at this point and for lots of reasons our program is stuck in neutral,” Bjork said. “We should be relevant on the national scene. Something is not clicking. Something is not working and therefore something had to give in order for Aggie football to reach our full potential.”
Texas A&M made the move to part ways with Fisher despite an extremely expensive buyout that will compensate Fisher to the tune of $77.6 million.
That says a lot about how imperative Texas A&M’s leadership felt making a move was.
“As leaders every decision we make or every decision we don’t make has consequences,” Ross Bjork said. “Consistency and how the the program operates on a daily basis impacts the confidence level of every single person in the program and thus influences performance. Based on my experience, the best programs have confidence. The program has an established identity. The program maximizes the talent. The leadership is fully integrated in the university, the athletics program and its culture. I did not feel like we were meeting those standards of excellence and leadership.”
In just under six years as head coach, Fisher coached the Aggies to a 45-25 record, including a 27-21 mark in SEC play over that time. Compare that to Texas A&M’s previous coach, Kevin Sumlin, who finished his six-year tenure in College Station with a 51-26 record, but was far behind Fisher’s SEC record at 15-17 in conference play.
Bjork had warm words for Fisher despite the dismissal.
“I respect coach Fisher,” he said. “He’s a good man. I respect his family and all that he’s accomplished in college football.”
Now the Aggies will move on with Elijah Robinson serving as the interim coach. Robinson was the co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach and had been with the program since 2018.
“He’s a great coach, a great leader and the young men in our program really look up to him in so many ways,” Bjork said.
The Texas A&M administrator also met with the rest of the coaching staff to rally the troops and ensure that they’ll handle business going forward until a new coach can be hired.
“We then met with the football staff, talked about coaching, supporting our players and making sure that they fulfill their obligation too as Aggie football coaches,” Ross Bjork said.