UNC football defensive coordinator Jay Bateman and outside linebackers coach Jovan Dewitt will not return to the team next season, the UNC athletics department confirmed Friday.
The news comes about a week after the Tar Heels' 38-21 loss in the Duke's Mayo Bowl to South Carolina.
Bateman was hired to UNC's coaching staff in 2018 after five seasons coaching for Army. He began his first season at the same time head coach Mack Brown began his second stint with the team.
North Carolina's defensive efficiency has declined during each of his three seasons, and the points per game average has increased. The team has gone 21-17 over the last three years. In 2021, UNC allowed 32.1 points per game, the highest mark in the last three seasons for North Carolina.
Jeremy Sharpe, UNC assistant athletic director, said in a statement Friday that Brown and Bateman "mutually decided it was best to part ways."
Sharpe also cited anticipated structural adjustments to the defense that would change the outside linebackers coaching position as why Dewitt would also not return next season.
Dewitt, who has over two decades of collegiate coaching experience, joined North Carolina's staff in January 2020 after two years coaching at Nebraska. In his first year, UNC's outside linebackers tied for 5th nationally.
"We appreciate everything Coach Bateman, Coach Dewitt, and their families did for the program and we wish them nothing but success as they transition to their next opportunities," Sharpe said in a statement.
