Neal Brown Wasn’t Surprised by Firing, ‘Not Bitter’ About How WVU Tenure Ended

Former WVU football head coach Neal Brown said he was not surprised when he was fired after six seasons with the Mountaineers on Sunday.

Talking with Hoppy Kercheval on “MetroNews Talkline” Friday morning, Brown said he feels that Saturday’s 52-15 loss to Texas Tech forced athletic director Wren Baker’s hand in the decision to part ways.

“There was a path forward, but we played so poorly on Saturday that the negativity just kind of steamrolled,” Brown said. “I don’t think that this is what Wren wanted to do, but it got to a point where it’s probably best for both parties.”

Bron said several times throughout the interview that he is not bitter and holds nothing against Baker or WVU.

“I love Wren Baker,” Brown said. “I know that’s a weird thing to say fresh off getting fired, but we have a great relationship. I have a tremendous amount of respect for him as a person and as an administrator. That’s a friendship that will go beyond West Virginia.”

Baker met with Brown on Sunday afternoon to inform him of the decision. The pair told Brown’s family and the WVU coaching staff and players of the firing before any information was made public.

Brown returned to the facility on Monday morning and spent over two hours meeting with players and assistant coaches.

“We made the decision to come back in on Monday morning,” Brown said. “I met with the staff first and then I met with our team and that was really hard. I’d be lying if I told you I got up Monday morning like ‘man, I want to back to the office.’” 

It was those meetings and attending his daughter’s middle school basketball game later that evening that helped Brown get closure on his six-year tenure in Morgantown.

“What was really difficult was really rewarding in the end and it gave me closure,” he said. “I met one-on-one for probably two-plus hours with our staff and I left there just really heartful. I really felt like we made a difference.”

On the field, the Mountaineers went 37-35 under Brown with three bowl game appearances. The high point of Brown’s tenure was a nine-win 2023 season that finished with a victory in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl over North Carolina.

Off the field, however, is where Brown felt he made the biggest impact at WVU.

“When I think about our tenure here, there is no question in my mind that from January of 2019 until Sunday when it ended, we left the West Virginia football program in a better place whether it’s infrastructure or bricks and mortar,” he said. “If you look at our facility now compared to the one we inherited, if you look at the support system we put in place from strength and conditioning, nutrition, sports psychology, the fifth quarter program, this is the way a Power Four program should be.

“That’s no knock on (former WVU coach) Dana (Holgorsen), it’s just we’ve matured as a football program where we’ve gotten that.”

The Mountaineers will appear in another bowl this year, the Frisco Bowl against No. 25 Memphis on Dec. 17. Offensive coordinator Chad Scott is serving as interim head coach.

For a related story, Neal Brown feels expectations didn’t match finances and expects change for WVU.