Memphis, TN - The University of Memphis head football
coach Tommy West announced Monday that defensive coordinator Joe Lee Dunn was
relieved of his coaching duties with the team.
'This is not a decision based on the East Carolina game (35-20 loss on
Saturday),' West said. 'This is a decision based on philosophies and kind of
how we have been playing for awhile.'
Dunn, who led the Memphis defense since the spring of 2003, also served as
defensive coordinator for Memphis from 1989-91 under Chuck Stobart. During the
late 1990s, Dunn served as the defensive coordinator at Ole Miss, Arkansas and
Mississippi State.
'I want to thank Coach Dunn for the contributions he made in the three years
that he was here,' West said. 'I think he was a big part of our success but I
have a responsibility to my boss (athletic director R.C. Johnson) and our team
to do what I feel is the right thing. I like Joe Lee as a person. This is a
business decision by me. I didn't feel that at this time we were moving
forward on the defensive side of the ball. When I feel that way and I can't be
positive about what we are doing, then I've got to make changes. Again, I
appreciate what Joe Lee did while he was here. This decision was based on a
confidence issue about our system.'
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