CHEYENNE, Wyo. -- Wyoming coach Dave Christensen fired defensive coordinator Chris Tormey on Tuesday after two straight losses in which the Cowboys surrendered more than 50 points a game.
"I felt that we needed to make a change at this time to give our football team and the young men on it the best opportunity to win our remaining four regular-season games," Christensen said in a statement. "The last two weeks, our defense has not performed up to the expectations of our coaching staff, our players, nor our fans."
Christensen named defensive line coach Jamar Cain as interim coordinator.
Tormey, who was not available for comment Tuesday, had been Wyoming's defensive coordinator for the past two seasons. He will be paid through his contract, which expires in December, according to the university.
The coaching change comes after news last week that Wyoming president Bob Sternberg had hired an outside consultant to evaluate the school's football and men's basketball programs.
Wyoming (4-4, 2-2 Mountain West) has a bye this week. The Cowboys next play No. 16 Fresno State (7-0, 4-0) in Laramie on Nov. 9.
In the last two games, Wyoming lost to conference opponents Colorado State (52-22) and San Jose State (51-44).
Wyoming is giving up 31.6 points and 465.8 yards per game this season. Among the 123 FBS teams, Wyoming ranks 93rd in scoring defense and 105th in total defense.
In addition, the Cowboys are 116th in rushing defense, giving up an average of 236 yards a game, and 64th in passing defense, surrendering an average of 229.8 yards a contest.
Cain is currently in his seventh year as a college coach at the NCAA Division I level. He joined the Cowboys this past spring after coaching at Cal Poly in the Big Sky Conference.