Fresno State head coach Jeff Tedford stepped down from his position due to health concerns in 2019.
There was no plan to return to Fresno State when he came out of retirement, but after former head coach Kalen DeBoer left to coach Washington, Tedford thought the timing aligned for him to come back as a Bulldog.
Fresno State Athletics announced on Wednesday that Tedford would return as head coach and re-introduced him to the program in a press conference.
Tedford has suffered heart problems that have led to him stepping down a coaching position before, like at Cal in 2012. He said his departure with Fresno State was an “emotional one” because it was unclear what would be the result of his upcoming procedures, and he didn’t want to put the program in a difficult situation, Tedford added.
“I’ve heard different things… different experiences people had. You know, it took them once, twice, three times [of surgery] or whatever,” Tedford said.
He went through an ablation, a heart surgery that regulates heart rhythm, in January 2020.
Despite the stories he’s heard, Tedford said the surgery was successful the first time and he took the next couple months to recover. During the time he regained his health, he reflected on his time as a coach.
“The mind started working about different things and missing it… really started having me reflect on what this role is and the impact that [it] has in so many people’s lives,” Tedford said. “And so for sure in about the last year, I knew I was going to get back into football.”
Conversations with his family to un-retire weren’t difficult, Tedford said.
He said his wife, Donna Tedford, was supportive and excited to remain a “part of the community” in Fresno. Athletics Director Terry Tumey acknowledged the Tedford family’s role in the re-hiring and thanked them.
“It is not just a commitment of one person when you take on the leadership role of an entity like football; it’s a family. And their sacrifice… I want to make sure that we fulfill the sacrifices that they’re making for us,” Tumey said.
Tumey was one of many present in Tedford’s return press-conference. University President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval also spoke at the conference.
“[Tedford] has a passion for embodying what it is that football is all about… [I’m] so very hopeful for the future of Fresno State football,” Jiménez-Sandoval said.
Before coaching at Fresno State, he played two years as a quarterback when the Bulldog Stadium first opened. He then started his career as a head coach in Cal. In his 11 seasons coaching the Bears, he recorded the most wins in the program’s history with 82.
After Cal, he went to Fresno State for two seasons. As the 19th head coach for the ‘Dogs, he led the program to a record of 26-14. During his tenure, the ‘Dogs won the 2018 Mountain West Championship, two MW West division titles and two bowl games.