Chris Petersen steps down as Washington head coach. Jimmy Lake takes over

The college football coaching carousel works in mysterious ways. Out of nowhere, Chris Petersen is no longer the head coach of the Washington Huskies.

Washington defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake is now in charge.

More below.

Chris Petersen announced Monday that he will step down from his position as University of Washington head football coach following the Huskies’ bowl game. UW Director of Athletics Jennifer Cohen has named current defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake the new head coach of the Huskies. Petersen will transition into a leadership advisory role for Husky Athletics.

”It has been a privilege and a professional dream fulfilled to be part of this world-class institution,” Petersen said. “I will forever be grateful, honored and humbled to have had the opportunity to coach our fine young men on Montlake for these past six seasons. I thank each of them, as well as our coaches and administrative staff for the incredible commitment they’ve made to Husky football during my tenure. The football program and Husky Athletics across the board will continue to prosper – and do it the right way – with Jen Cohen’s leadership and the University administration’s commitment to excellence. I’ll be a Husky for life, but now is the right time for me to step away from my head coaching duties, and recharge.”

Lake is a pretty good recruiter and a solid defensive coordinator. I don’t think Washington will far that far off in terms of grabbing major talent, but this is a seismic change in the Pac-12. You have to wonder what’s going on behind the scenes in Seattle.

Congrats to Justin Wilcox on finishing 2-1 as a head coach against his old boss, and nabbing the last two wins in dramatic fashion.