Oklahoma on Monday morning confirmed earlier reports of the firing of defensive coordinator Mike Stoops, and other staff changes to fill the vacancy on the staff.

For the remainder of the season, assistant head coach and defensive tackles coach Ruffin McNeill will serve as the defensive coordinator, coach Lincoln Riley announced. Bob Diaco will move from defensive specialist to coach the outside linebackers.

Oklahoma’s given up 48, 33, 21 and 27 points the last four games. The Sooners are ranked No. 79 in the country in scoring defense, and No. 96 in total defense.

McNeill previously was the defensive coordinator at UNLV, Fresno State and Texas Tech before he became head coach at East Carolina from 2010-2015. Diaco served as defensive coordinator at Cincinnati, Notre Dame and Nebraska. He was the head coach at Connecticut from 2014-2016.

“Ruffin has an impressive résumé,” Riley said. “That’s why I wanted him on our staff in the first place. I have confidence in his knowledge and leadership. Bob has a lot of experience in very good programs and also has a list of accomplishments that will help him step in and make an immediate impact. We are fortunate to have these men in our program. They’ll be ready to get to work in new roles right away.”

Stoops first joined the OU staff in 1999 and he left before 2004 season to become the head coach at Arizona, a position he held through the 2011 season. He then returned to OU for the 2012 season as defensive coordinator.