Just days after former University of Virginia football coach Mike London resigned, Brigham Young University’s Bronco Mendenhall snagged the title December 4, becoming UVA’s 40th head football coach.
At BYU, Mendenhall coached the Cougars for 11 seasons with an overall record of 99-42 and ranked 12th in total wins among all Football Bowl Subdivision teams during that time. He also ranks 13th in winning percentage among all active coaches with at least five years of FBS experience, and 10th among those with at least 10 years of experience, according to a press release by Virginia Sports.
The Cougars are one of 11 teams to advance to a bowl game each season over the last 11 years, with Florida State being the only team to win more bowl games—seven—than BYU’s six.
Mendenhall played football for Utah’s Snow College for two years and finished his career as a starter at Oregon State, where he played both linebacker and safety. He began coaching as a graduate assistant at Oregon State, coached at Snow College and Northern Arizona, and returned to Oregon State as defensive coordinator. He also coached at Louisiana Tech and New Mexico before beginning his stint at BYU as defensive coordinator in 2003. He was promoted to head coach in 2005.
Mendenhall’s compensation for the next five years is $3.25 million annually, which does not include additional performance or longevity bonuses that he may earn.
He and his wife, Holly, have three sons—Raeder, Breaker and Cutter.