Joe Scott is out as Air Force's head coach, the school announced on Friday.
Scott had been suspended indefinitely last month, pending an investigation into the treatment of cadet-athletes. At the time, Scott said he would fully cooperate with the inquiry.
"Coach Scott's passion for the game of basketball has long been evident in his competitive and direct coaching style. It was this coaching style that guided Air Force Basketball to some of the program's most memorable achievements during his initial tenure at the Air Force Academy," athletic director Nathan Pine said in a statement. "This is a different day, and now is the right time for a new voice and a new approach to drive the culture and success of the men's basketball program, aligned with the Air Force Academy's mission of forging leaders of character developed to lead in our Air Force and Space Force. We thank Coach Scott for his 10 years of service to the Academy and wish him and his family well."
"I thank Nate Pine for his leadership. The Air Force Academy gave me my first head coaching opportunity and I am forever grateful. We will always be fans of Air Force Basketball," Scott said.
Scott's second go-round with the Academy began in 2020, when he took over for Dave Pilipovich. The Falcons failed to finish better than 10th place in the Mountain West in any of his six seasons at the helm, including last-place finishes in each of the past two seasons. They were 3-14 (0-6 MWC) when Scott was suspended and haven't won a game since.
In five-plus seasons, Scott went 15-78 in league play.
It was not nearly as successful as his first term with the school from 1999 to 2004, when he guided Air Force to the 2004 NCAA tournament, winning 22 games and the Mountain West regular-season title.
Princeton hired Scott away from Air Force in 2004, and Scott spent three seasons as the head coach of the Tigers before going to Denver for nine seasons. He won 22 games in back-to-back seasons in 2012 and 2013, winning the WAC regular-season title in 2013.
