Jackson Free Press

OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — University of Mississippi has hired former Colorado head coach Mike MacIntyre to be its new defensive coordinator.

Ole Miss announced MacIntyre's hiring on Monday. School spokesman Kyle Campbell says MacIntyre received a three-year contract that will pay him $1.5 million annually.

The 53-year-old MacIntyre arrives at Ole Miss after six seasons as Colorado's coach, where he finished with a 30-44 record, including a 14-39 mark in the Pac-12. He was named the AP coach of the year in 2016, when he led the Buffaloes to a 10-4 record, including an 8-1 conference record and a spot in the conference championship game.

But Colorado couldn't match that success over the next two seasons and he was fired in November.

MacIntyre will try to improve an Ole Miss defense that ranked at or near the bottom of the Southeastern Conference in most major statistical categories. Ole Miss finished with a 5-7 record.