Akron fires coach Tom Arth after 3-24 record in 3 seasons

Akron is making a change.

Yahoo Sports’ Pete Thamel reported Thursday morning that Akron has fired head coach Tom Arth. Arth was in the midst of his third season coaching the Zips. Akron dropped to 2-7 with a 31-25 loss to Ball State on Tuesday night. The team has just a 1-4 record in MAC play.

With Arth no longer with the team, associate head coach Oscar Rodriguez will serve as the interim head coach. The Athletic first reported the news of Arth’s dismissal.

"We appreciate Coach Tom Arth's work on behalf of our student-athletes and coaches and we wish him well moving forward," Akron athletic director Charles Guthrie said in a statement.

The two wins this season were actually an improvement for a program that has struggled mightily under Arth. The Zips went 0-12 in 2019 and then 1-5 in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Overall, Arth amassed a 3-24 record with a 2-17 mark in MAC play during his time at Akron.

Arth, previously the head coach at Chattanooga (FCS) and John Carroll (DIII), was hired after the school decided to let go of Terry Bowden following the 2018 season. Bowden spent seven seasons at Akron and led the program to two bowl games and a MAC East title. Before Bowden’s arrival, Akron had just one bowl appearance in program history.

With the Akron job open, there are now seven available FBS jobs. Akron joins LSU, TCU, Texas Tech, UConn, USC and Washington State. Georgia Southern also had an opening until it hired ex-USC coach Clay Helton earlier this week.

Akron’s next game is Tuesday on the road against Western Michigan. The Zips will then close out their season at home against Kent State and on the road against Toledo.