Oxy Fires Head Football Coach for Alleged Recruiting Violations

has fired its head football coach, Dale Widolff, following a National Collegiate Athletic Association probe into alleged recruiting violations, college officials announced Wednesday.

A coach at Oxy for 30 years, Widolff was suspended for six weeks without pay in August 2010 after the college discovered that he had allegedly violated NCAA rules and college policies.

"We take violations of the rules very seriously and believe that, however difficult, we have done the right thing," said Occidental College Athletic Director Jaime Hoffman. "Our top priority is to ensure that the future of our student-athletes is not placed in jeopardy."

This is the second investigation into Occidental's football program in two years. The NCAA has asked Oxy officials not to publicly discuss details of the case because to do so might hinder the investigation. Hoffman contacted the NCAA on April 17, triggering the probe into his alleged violations.

Under Widolff, Oxy won 11 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles. Widolff’s 178 victories ranked him fifth among active NCAA Division III coaches.

Occidental will conduct a national search for Widolff’s successor. Meanwhile, offensive coordinator Eric Bergstrom will serve as acting head football coach.