Rutgers University has cleaned house in its beleaguered athletic department — firing its athletic director, Julie Hermann, and head football coach, Kyle Flood.The university announced Sunday that it had terminated the contracts of both officials, following a disappointing and scandal-plagued football season and a tumultuous tenure for Hermann. At the same time, Rutgers announced that Patrick Hobbs, a dean emeritus at the Seton Hall University School of Law, had been hired to replace Hermann and start the search for a new coach.

The moves were confirmed in a letter from Rutgers President Robert Barchi, who praised Flood and thanked him for his service, but pointed to the football team’s struggles on the field and issues off the field. Barchi did not mention a specific incident, but the 4-8 season has been marred by the arrests of seven players and an academic misconduct violation that landed Flood a three-game suspension.

Of Hermann, Barchi said she came to the university in 2013, “at a time when the program was in turmoil, with a vision where she could take our Athletics Program.”

“I believe, however, at this point, when major changes are being made in our football program, we need a fresh start,” Barchi wrote. “Having reached that conclusion this past week, it would not have been fair to Julie, to Rutgers and our student-athletes, or to potential football coaching candidates, for her to continue in her role.”

Hermann, who replaced Tim Pernetti as AD, has drawn criticism for her troubles with fundraising and for gaffes such as making a joke about the Jerry Sandusky child abuse scandal during a staff meeting.

Barchi noted that he hired Hobbs as Hermann’s permanent successor after a “strong referral,” despite initially planning to hire an AD on an interim basis. Aside from being dean of the law school from 1999 to 2014, the well-respected Hobbs is a former interim AD with Seton Hall University and most recently was tapped by Gov. Chris Christie to be an independent ethics ombudsman to the governor’s office.

The latter position came in the wake of the George Washington Bridge lane closure scandal in 2013.

“In my meetings and conversations with Pat, and also with board members Greg Brown and Ken Schmidt, it was clear to all of us that Pat had the attributes required for our next Director of Athletics,” Barchi wrote. “We offered Pat the permanent job on Friday and we are proud to welcome him as our new Director of Athletics.”

Hobbs will be paid $560,000 a year under a five-year contract, with annual incentivized bonuses based on performance, according to NJ Advance Media. He is no stranger to the state’s business community: About a decade ago, he helped mediate a disagreement between the former owners of the New Jersey Devils and Newark city officials over the financing of what became the Prudential Center, averting a roadblock in the major economic development project.

Hobbs, who was ranked No. 53 on the 2011 NJBIZ Power 100, was also a key figure in the negotiations several years later that helped keep the sale of the NHL team out of the courts.

The terminations came a day after Rutgers ended its season with a loss to the University of Maryland, The university has struggled to compete since joining the Big Ten in 2014, a move that was meant to catapult it athletically, academically and financially.

Norries Wilson, the football team’s associate head coach, will serve as interim head coach. Even before Sunday’s announcements, rumors had swirled about potential replacements for Flood, including former Rutgers coach Greg Schiano and former Miami coach Al Golden.