After the best season of his three and a half years at Washington State, head coach Jake Dickert is leaving Pullman to take over the program at Wake Forest.

Dickert was 23-20 overall with the Cougars, after taking over midway through the 2021 season following the firing of former head coach Nick Rolovich.

After going 3-3 as the interim head coach, Dickert led Washington State to 7-6, 5-7 and 8-4 records.

He'll take over at Wake Forest after former Demon Deacons coach Dave Clawson resigned following 11 years with the program, in which he went 67-69 and 32-55 in the ACC, finishing his tenure with back-to-back 4-8 seasons.

Dickert released a statement on leaving for Wake Forest, per ESPN.

"My number one priority will be building relationships with our current student-athletes and earning their trust. We will have a clear focus on retaining our current roster while adding valuable pieces that fit our program and Wake Forest University. Additionally, I am excited to immerse myself in this special community as throughout this process my belief that this is the perfect place for our family and our program only strengthened," Dickert said.

"Before I go further, I want to express my deepest gratitude to the players, staff, and leadership at Washington State University. I will forever be thankful for their belief in me and the opportunity to lead a program that meant so much to my family and me. The relationships built there will remain a cherished part of our journey, and I am immensely proud of what we accomplished together both on and off the field."

WSU athletic director Anne McCoy announced that Pete Kaligis will serve as the interim head coach for the Cougars' Holiday Bowl matchup with Syracuse on Dec. 27 in San Diego. Kaligis has been WSU's assistant head coach and defensive tackles coach.

It's been a decimating month for the Cougars, who lost coveted offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle to Oklahoma and star quarterback John Mateer to the transfer portal.