UNC's press conference this morning announcing Butch Davis's dismissal was not your standard pro forms announcement. Dick Baddour, athletic director for over a decade announced he would be stepping down at the end of his contract next summer. In addition, Chancellor Thorp will seek a replacement as soon as possible, with Baddour staying on primarily to deal with the ongoing NCAA investigation. Baddour will have little to no input on the hiring of the next permanent football coach.
There has been no decision on an interim coach for this season, underscoring how sudden the firing was. The position will be filled by someone on the current staff, however. Thorp reiterated his earlier statements that the firing was not a result of the anything new in the NCAA investigation, leaving the question of timing answered beyond "I realize that the timing is bad."
UNC does not expect to dismiss Davis for cause, meaning the school could be on the hook for as much as 2.7 million dollars, which definitely won't go over well with already angry Tar Heel fans. More analysis of this tonight, when I've had time to digest the reports.