Dave Steckel, who was hired to lead the Missouri State program back in 2014, and the school have reached a separation agreement.
Back on November 27th, athletic director Kyle Moats announced their intention to honor their commitment to coach Steckel, but the two parties met after the holidays and a mutual separation was decided upon.
The school announced the news this morning. The release shares, in part:
"We want to thank Stec for his hard work and dedication to Missouri State," said Director of Athletics Kyle Moats. "He and I met after the holidays to discuss football-related matters, which ultimately led to this mutual agreement."
Steckel, a former longtime assistant at Missouri from 2001-14, was under contract at Missouri State through the 2021 season. He also previously coached at Rutgers, Toledo, Lehigh, Minnesota, Ball State, and Miami (OH).
The terms of the separation state that Steckel will step down and the school will provide him with a max buyout of $340k plus moving expenses. The buyout is payable in three annual installments, with the first totaling $140k, with two payments of $100k a piece to take place in January of 2021 and 2022, depending on Stec's coaching status at the time, the release shares.
In five seasons leading the program, Steckel led the team to a 13-42 mark.
A national search to find the next leader of the program will begin immediately. In the meantime, offensive coordinator Justin Kramer has been named interim head coach.