After six years, Texas A&M has fired head coach Kevin Sumlin, the university announced on Sunday. Sumlin finishes his A&M career with a 51-26 record. He ranks No. 4 all-time in wins among Aggie coaches. However, he had an SEC record of only 25-23 and 16-20 vs. the SEC West. He also failed to ever beat LSU.

"Kevin's tenure included some remarkable achievements and he leaves our program as one of the winningest football coaches in our storied history," athletic director Scott Woodward said in a release. "Kevin made us a better all-around football program and led our program with dignity and character. He's a first-class person."



"Our expectations at A&M are very high. We believe that we should compete for SEC championships on an annual basis and, at times, national championships. I believe that we need a new coach to take us there. On behalf of Aggies everywhere, my thanks to Kevin and his family for his service to Texas A&M. I wish him the very best."

Sumlin signed a six-year contract extension after the 2013 season for $30 million over six seasons. It was fully guaranteed and the Aggies must pay the approximately $10.4 million remainder of the balance within 60 days of his termination. However, there is a chance the two sides negotiate a lower buyout as Sumlin is considered a candidate for the vacant Arizona State head coaching position that also opened on Sunday and wants to move quickly toward that goal.

Special teams and tight ends coach Jeff Banks will serve as the interim coach for the bowl game.

Sumlin came to Aggieland after a successful stint at Houston, where he went 35-17 in four seasons, including 12-1 in 2011. He was hired after that season by A&M.

After serving as the Aggies’ offensive coordinator in 2002, Sumlin made his return to Texas A&M when he was named the head coach on Dec. 10, 2011, replacing the fired Mike Sherman.

The Aggies were expected to struggle in the 2012 season as it was the team’s first year in the SEC and there was a redshirt freshman quarterback starter. However, Johnny Manziel led the team to an 11-2 record en route to becoming the first-ever freshman Heisman Trophy winner. With a win at No. 1 Alabama in November, the season ended with a 41-13 blowout of former Big 12 rival Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl and the Aggies finished the year ranked No. 5 in both major polls.

Though there was a lot of excitement surrounding the 2013 season, A&M did not quite live up to expectations. The Aggies finished 9-4 in Manziel’s second and final season in an Aggie uniform and were ranked No. 18 in the final polls.

The 2014 season marked the beginning of an era of shuffling quarterbacks. Kenny Hill began the season as the starter and received early Heisman talk before eventually being benched in favor of true freshman Kyle Allen. The Aggies started out 5-0 but finished the regular season with a 7-5 record. A win over West Virginia in the Liberty Bowl brought the record to 8-5, something that would become synonymous with A&M football.

Allen began the 2015 season as the starter under center but split snaps – and eventually starts – with true freshman Kyler Murray. After another 5-0 start and then 8-5 final record, both quarterbacks elected to transfer prior to the bowl game, which Jake Hubenak started.

***With the coaching search, always know the latest info with buy one, get one free VIP access to GigEm247***

In 2016, the Aggies received a graduate transfer quarterback in Trevor Knight. He led A&M to a 6-0 start and a No. 4 ranking in the initial College Football Playoff rankings. However, an injury to Knight combined with yet another late-season collapse saw the team finish 8-5 once again.

Prior to the 2017 season, Woodward publicly put Sumlin on notice. On the Paul Finebaum show on May 30, he said, "Coach Sumlin knows he has to win. He has to win this year. He has to do better than he has done in the past."

Sumlin was seen as a solid recruiter for A&M and his first full class in 2013 finished No. 9 in the country. The 2014 class was even better, finishing No. 5 overall. The 2015 recruiting cycle saw the Aggies finish No. 11. In 2016, the Aggies ranked No. 18 and in 2017, they were No. 13. However, many of the highest-rated players in that time either flamed out, suffered career-ending injuries or were dismissed for off-the-field violations.

At A&M, Sumlin coached a Heisman Trophy winner in Manziel and an Outland Trophy winner in Luke Joeckel (2012). He had first-team All-Americans in Manziel (2012, 2013), Joeckel (2012), defensive end Damontre Moore (2012), wide receiver Mike Evans (2013), offensive tackle Jake Matthews (2013), punter Drew Kaser (2013) and defensive end Myles Garrett (2016).

A former walk-on linebacker at Purdue, Sumlin was a four-year starter for the Boilermakers. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Washington State in 1989 and 1990 and then moved on to a full-time position as the Wyoming receivers coach from 1991-92. He took the same job at Minnesota, where he served from 1993-97, the final year as the quarterback coach. After returning to his alma mater as the receivers coach from 1998-00, Sumlin was hired by R.C. Slocum at Texas A&M in 2001 as the receivers coach and assistant head coach. He was given the role of offensive coordinator midway through the 2002 season but was let go when Slocum was fired after that season.

Sumlin then made his way to Oklahoma, where he became one of the hottest assistants in the country. After serving as the tight ends and special teams coach for the Sooners from 2003-05, he became the co-offensive coordinator and receivers coach from 2006-07 before Houston gave him his first opportunity as head coach.

RELATED: Texas A&M head coach hot board (VIP)

RELATED: The highs and lows of Sumlin's tenure in Aggieland