Idaho hires former assistant Thomas Ford Jr. as next head football coach

Dec. 19—The University of Idaho has hired Thomas Ford Jr., a former assistant coach for the Vandals, as the program’s 37th head football coach, it was announced Wednesday.

Ford was Idaho’s running backs coach and special teams coordinator under former coach Jason Eck for two seasons.

Most recently, he was the running backs coach at Oregon State for one season.

“First I would like to thank my wife Shannon and my kiddos for being the support system most dream of,” Ford said in a news release. “I would also like to thank (Idaho athletic directory) Terry Gawlik and (President) Scott Green for the tremendous opportunity they have provided. I couldn’t be more excited to be coming back to the Palouse.”

Ford, a Seattle native, attended Linfield College (Ore.) and played professional indoor football for four years, winning a National Indoor Football League championship with the Tri-Cities Fever in 2005.

He coached at various schools, including Puget Sound in Tacoma and the University of Washington.

He began his coaching career at Linfield (Ore.) from 2007-08, then served as the special teams coordinator and wide receivers coach at Southeastern Oklahoma State (2009-12), before becoming the defensive coordinator at Puget Sound for the 2013 season.

Ford led Stadium High School for four years in Tacoma and then took the helm of Simon Fraser University, an NCAA D-II school in British Columbia, Canada, before serving as a quality control analyst for the Washington Huskies on former coach Jimmy Lake’s staff.

He was the Beavers’ running backs coach this past season in Corvallis, Ore.

During his two years in Moscow, Ford coached running back Anthony Woods to first-team All-Big Sky Conference honors. Woods totaled 1,155 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns.

The Vandals also saw two special teams players — long snapper Hogan Hatten and returner…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/idaho-hires-former-assistant-thomas-131600471.html

Author : Lewiston Tribune, Idaho

Publish date : 2024-12-19 13:16:00

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