No, I don't miss JT at all, he had a great run here at CAL but the program had become stale at best and cancerous at worst. JT walked away with some serious $$$ in his pocket and a place in CAL history as the coach with the most wins. It's time to move on from JT and I have.

Don't worry, he is making per year what 20 of us make, without having to lift a finger. He didn't "give" us anything. He got paid to do what he did -- and handsomely. He still does. He's taken our school's money without having to work for it, legally of course. Yes, he's generally an upstanding guy, respectable, and now we see that Tosh was the one that spoiled his program. However, Tedford as a coach lost it post Riley incident. I thank him for the 2002-2006 years. They were really enjoyable.

I for one felt that Tedford deserved at least one year with the new stadium despite the struggles of his later years. However, he did not deserve more than that based on how the season unfolded as well as the APR scores. One or the other would cost him his job but both together meant he had to go. (Presumably high dollar donors also helped push him out.)

I am grateful for the good years we had under him. It was nice to watch well coached teams for a change. I will always have a bit of fondness for him and I will root for him to do well so long as he isn't coaching against Cal. For that reason, it will be good to see him in the NFL. I hope that he succeeds and I think he probably will but I'm no football expert.

OskiMD;842253043 said:

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Yes, good riddance.

If Dykes wins a Holiday Bowl he will have already almost matched Tedford's legacy at Cal. And I'm talking about the "good" legacy.

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LOL. Yeah, Sonny just needs 9 winning seasons and 7 Big Game wins.

Although he lost his way, JT left the place a lot better than he found it. He bears responsibility for academic failures of football team but there is a greater institutional problem at Cal (recall the team was on probation when JT first came to Cal and witness men's basketball and women's softball) for which SB has been given a pass thus far.

So far Dykes has made a bigger mess than the one he inherited.

chazzed;842253099 said:

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No, I wasn't. Please don't put words in my mouth and read my reply right above this one for more clarification. I'm not one to always blame the head coach.

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No, it wasn't intended as a response to you. Please read the post between yours and mine, by GTA, for clarification.

I have no problem saying I miss Tedford and I'm not going snarky either. I'll say the same thing about Sonny Dykes if he can pull it together and win. I see no point in slamming players, former players or former coaches. It simply speaks of small mindedness and a lack of perspective and appreciation.

If you're a real Cal fan, you've seen the bottom (most likely your whole life) and understand CFB at Cal before and after Tedford. To whine now is understandable (to a degree) but really f****** weak.

Tedford did a tremendous job getting Cal to this point...but YES, the APR thing spelled doom, and he had to go.

Are there circumstances? Sure...tree sitters, build out, 3 years in limbo, playing at ATT, yada, yada, yada. No one, and I mean NO ONE, gets through a major renovation over a period three years if you're basically living in the building to start. Basically career suicide. Yes, Tedford got paid well but it was a two-way street, Cal NEEDED Tedford to stick around to complete the facilities.

Any way, Tedford isn't coming back. It was time for a change but honestly, it would have been better to wait a year.

ninetyfourbear;842253110 said:

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I for one felt that Tedford deserved at least one year with the new stadium despite the struggles of his later years. However, he did not deserve more than that based on how the season unfolded as well as the APR scores. One or the other would cost him his job but both together meant he had to go. (Presumably high dollar donors also helped push him out.)

I am grateful for the good years we had under him. It was nice to watch well coached teams for a change. I will always have a bit of fondness for him and I will root for him to do well so long as he isn't coaching against Cal. For that reason, it will be good to see him in the NFL. I hope that he succeeds and I think he probably will but I'm no football expert.

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Last year, I thought things did not look good for this year. We lost key players on what was already a horrid defense, we lost our best player on offense, and would most likely be starting Bridgford or a freshman at QB.

The decision to move on seemed the correct one at the time, but in retrospect, with 20/20 hindsight, we could have kept Tedford another year, let him ride the program to rock bottom (as with Holmoe) saved some money, then had more money to spend this year on a new staff with perhaps better options available and fewer Tedford loyalists pinning for Emerald Bowl victories.

Tedhead94;842253128 said:

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No, it wasn't intended as a response to you. Please read the post between yours and mine, by GTA, for clarification.

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Got it.

6bear6;842253057 said:

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A player like Goff, with enormous talent, wouldn't see the field for a minimum of two years.

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Aaron Rodgers, with enormous talent, saw the field in his first game in the program. There were many instances of Tedford seeming to favor an older player over a superior younger one, but time after time he was proven right when the younger player's time eventually came.

Gizzly Bear;842253146 said:

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Aaron Rodgers, with enormous talent, saw the field in his first game in the program. There were many instances of Tedford seeming to favor an older player over a superior younger one, but time after time he was proven right when the younger player's time eventually came.

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So did Joe Ayoob and Zach Maynard, the other two transfers Tedford brought into the program.

With Goff, we are talking about freshmen. Tedford never started a true freshman.

calumnus;842253150 said:

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So did Joe Ayoob and Zach Maynard, the other two transfers Tedford brought into the program.

With Goff, we are talking about freshmen. Tedford never started a true freshman.

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Well the poster did say for a minimum of two years, and Rodgers was a true sophomore in 2003. Was there even a single freshman QB who deserved to start under Tedford but didn't?

calumnus;842253131 said:

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The decision to move on seemed the correct one at the time, but in retrospect, with 20/20 hindsight, we could have kept Tedford another year, let him ride the program to rock bottom (as with Holmoe) saved some money, then had more money to spend this year on a new staff with perhaps better options available and fewer Tedford loyalists pinning for Emerald Bowl victories.

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2012 was rock bottom. Well, this year was rock bottom.

But 2012 felt like rock bottom because of the way we lost.

It wasn't the 3-9 record. It was the way the team played. The blowouts. The lack of fundamentals. Their attitude.

It was like there was nobody coaching the team.

If Tedford had gone 5-7, he would've likely stayed, and we'd probably have another losing season this year.

And it might've become a trend.

The thing is, as my earlier link showed, Tedford kept trying to change things to improve. At least that's what he said. But nothing really changed. He was stuck in this position, and he wasn't going to get out.

Tell me this ( Analogy time )
If you had a beat up old car, and someone came along and fixed it up, painted it and made it all nice and shiny, then over time snuck back and f#*ked it all up again, which part would you remember the most????

Gizzly Bear;842253173 said:

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Well the poster did say for a minimum of two years, and Rodgers was a true sophomore in 2003. Was there even a single freshman QB who deserved to start under Tedford but didn't?

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Year Freshman QB (Starter)

2002 Levy (Boller)
2003 Dove (Robertson/Rodgers)
2004 Longshore (Rodgers)
2005 Reed (Longshore/Ayoob/Levy)
2006 Riley (Longshore)
2007 Mansion (Longshore/Riley)
2008 Sweeney (Longshore/Riley)
2009 Bridgford (Riley)
2010 Hinder (Riley/Mansion)
2011 Boehm (Maynard)
2012 Kline (Maynard/Bridgford)

The only two I kind of wanted to see at the time were Reed (2005) and Kline (2012), but it is tough to argue that would be the right call even/especially in retrospect.

I think the overwhelming takeaway is how poorly Tedford did in recruiting/developing high school QBs, which was his overwhelming preference, given his playbook.

Yeah, I miss Tedford. I think he should've had at least one more year, although admittedly APR sucked). Sue me.

As bad as 2012 was, JT would not have had the atrocity of 2013 under Dykes and this gimmick offense.

calumnus;842253190 said:

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I think the overwhelming takeaway is how poorly Tedford did in recruiting/developing high school QBs, which was his overwhelming preference, given his playbook.

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That's a fair point. It's ironic that the best high school QB he recruited for us is probably the one he never coached.

okaydo;842253175 said:

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2012 was rock bottom. Well, this year was rock bottom.

But 2012 felt like rock bottom because of the way we lost.

It wasn't the 3-9 record. It was the way the team played. The blowouts. The lack of fundamentals. Their attitude.

It was like there was nobody coaching the team.

If Tedford had gone 5-7, he would've likely stayed, and we'd probably have another losing season this year.

And it might've become a trend.

The thing is, as my earlier link showed, Tedford kept trying to change things to improve. At least that's what he said. But nothing really changed. He was stuck in this position, and he wasn't going to get out.

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I agree. I just think it should have been apparent that with the upcoming odd year schedule, the personnel losses (before the injuries) we would likely have as bad or even worse record in 2013. Thus, it might have been better, in retrospect, to let Tedford ride it out a little more and make the coaching change this year with a few $million more in our pocket. This is where Sandy could have approached Peterson before firing Tedford, if he wasn't going to be interested, then maybe let Tedford coach one more year...again, hindsight is 20/20.

DBear;842253073 said:

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I think the real question is - did we replace him with the right man? :confused:

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Only time will tell.

FrankBear21;842253023 said:

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With all the talk of him going to the nfl as an OC, I'm starting to miss the guy. He gave us a renovated stadium and new facilities, we gave him one year.

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Yeah with Tedford potentially going with Lovie Smith ... The "nightmare" for the Texans would be hiring Smith, getting Tedord (Gary Kubiak II), and then drafting Carr ... The city would implode on sports radio...

Latest word is that Bill o'Brien still is in the lead...

Olee Berkeley-eye;842253193 said:

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As bad as 2012 was, JT would not have had the atrocity of 2013 under Dykes and this gimmick offense.

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Debatable.

For personnel/matchup/continuity reasons I think JT would have probably won one more game this season. Two at the absolute most.

2-10 is still abysmal, and the fan base would have been either in meltdown mode (in our case) or checked out entirely for 15 continuous months until about now, when a new hire would be made.

In this parallel universe I would argue we would be even worse off in the long run due to having a lame duck coach for all of 2013 and that recruiting cycle.

With Dykes as coach, 2013 may not turn out to have been a total waste. Young players, who Tedford would not have played, got valuable experience and recruiting last year at least was salvaged.

calumnus;842253200 said:

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I agree. I just think it should have been apparent that with the upcoming odd year schedule, the personnel losses (before the injuries) we would likely have as bad or even worse record in 2013. Thus, it might have been better, in retrospect, to let Tedford ride it out a little more and make the coaching change this year with a few $million more in our pocket. This is where Sandy could have approached Peterson before firing Tedford, if he wasn't going to be interested, then maybe let Tedford coach one more year...again, hindsight is 20/20.

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This. We will never know but Tedford and Peterson are friends. And more than a few thought JT was done dirty. No way Peterson swoops in on that, on those terms. Didn't he straight out deny to interview? But hey two things are certain: 1) Uduh puts their money where their mouth is (someone wake SB the hell up please) and 2) its all water under the bridge.

Go Bears!

I was/is a JT supporter. I loved his style of offense early on. JT changed his offensive philosophy during his tenure and Cal suffered. Each year got worse, JT looked wore out. It happens to coaches..no matter how much money you make...you get burnt out. The timing of the coaching change I thought was the right move..unfortunately for us...We just blew up our whole program to run an air raid gimmick. I hope it works. My hope though is when/if it doesn't...we go back to being a balanced offense with some power running, and solid defense.

MinotStateBeav;842253232 said:

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I was/is a JT supporter. I loved his style of offense early on. JT changed his offensive philosophy during his tenure and Cal suffered. Each year got worse, JT looked wore out. It happens to coaches..no matter how much money you make...you get burnt out. The timing of the coaching change I thought was the right move..unfortunately for us...We just blew up our whole program to run an air raid gimmick. I hope it works. My hope though is when/if it doesn't...we go back to being a balanced offense with some power running, and solid defense.

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Dude, where ya been?

I stated once tedford got fired that the performance on the field was going to hurt even more. Everyone is entitled to thier own opinion, and i believe firing tedford was not the way to go. I look forward to watching him orchestrate a potentially lethal offense in tampa next year.

I miss the idealized version of Tedford that many here have and that may not have existed. He had a lot of great qualities, but he many years ago lost the ability to lead the program. His academic failures were the final nail in the coffin, but certainly not the only reason he needed to go.

The question should not be Tedford vs Dykes, because it implies one of the two is the right choice and the unfortunate truth is that it looks like neither is.

For what it's worth, I say this as someone with profound respect for Tedford as an offensive coach and all around honest guy with lots of integrity. I agree with jax that he'll do well as an OC at the next level since it will allow him to focus on what he's truly gifted at.

Memory is bad but I do remember 2 catchable balls clanging off his hands in the end zone but it may have been another Big Game. The worse memory though is his falling down on the 1 yard line against AU with no one within 20 yards and then we couldn't punch the ball in from there. That wound up being the RB loss.:headbang

We still had a 40% grad rate, and UCLA tanked on Memorial, so yeah, four more years was cool.

As much of a genius Tedford was supposed to be how did he somehow forgot that to have an effective offense you have to have a high performing O Line? There hasn't been a decent (most have been terrible) O Line in the past four seasons. How did Tedford go dumb on this aspect? The change to the 'spread offense' with the 'just get in the way' Line blocking and smurf size running backs and receivers just 'busted the watermelon' for the offense.
Tedford could see in the bowl game with Texas that the O Line was getting pushed around with ease and Maynard was harassed into too many mistakes, the same as the upper level Pac 12 Teams were now doing to the Bears. Everyone else just followed the script as the O Line had been exposed as a fraud and still is. Fix the O Line and everything will get better.

FrankBear21;842253023 said:

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With all the talk of him going to the nfl as an OC, I'm starting to miss the guy. He gave us a renovated stadium and new facilities, we gave him one year.

I don't know if he would have turned the program around after the fiasco, but maybe he deserved a shot. It sounded like he was willing to make some changes.

I just know we won't produce the NFL players like we did with him anymore. When cal was bad, at least we had all the past bears to root for in the nfl.

I hope Dykes can turn things around. He has only got one more year to do so.

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No. It was time for him to go. He gave us 5-6 very good years, but then went downhill. The declining performance on the field and in the classroom merited his exit. There's no evidence that Sonny is the answer, or even an improvement, but I have no regrets about Tedford leaving.

Looperbear;842253039 said:

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I thought firing JT was the right thing to do at the time, but now I am not so sure. JT had lost his way in the last few years and was being pretty stubborn and more withdrawn. Could he have bounced out of it? I don't know but I miss going to bowl games and winning Big Game.

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My feelings exactly.

Wow, you really have to wonder what someone from furd, Oregon, UCLA, or USC would think about our "debate" over whether we were better off hiring Dykes or sticking with Tedford.

Probably the same things we'd think about a thread on WSU's board in 2009 about whether they were better off with Paul Wulff or Bill Doba:

"That sorry program is F'd in the A either way".

No - he left the academics in a terrible mess & had clearly lost his touch.

Who left 75,000 unhappy fans in Lansing Michigan (the Spartans who are now in the Rose Bowl) and routed Baylor (who are also playing tomorrow). Those teams have rebuilt. We have not. Sad.

Are you serious? One year? No point in rehashing old junk. But I'd much rather take a chance and seek greatness than continue to wallow in mediocrity as a non-player. You're remembering the early Tedford years. To people outside of Cal we had become irrelevant again. Stanford (how many BCS appearances now in a row???) used to be dominated by Tedford---how old is that news? The program needed to be fixed, from the ground up. If Dykes isn't the guy, so be it......we move on in a year or two. But please, enough of this melodramatic delusional reminiscing about Tedford. And who cares how many NFL players we produce if we don't accomplish crap while they're here? Sheesh!!!

OskiMD;842253043 said:

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Yes, good riddance.

If Dykes wins a Holiday Bowl he will have already almost matched Tedford's legacy at Cal. And I'm talking about the "good" legacy.

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let's focus on winning a game first, then we can worry about things like a holiday bowl (and the equivalent would have to be Alamo Bowl if we want to really get into technicalities of comparison)

as for this actual thread, I miss the Old JT but he was gone and who knows if he'd ever come back. he probably needed the kick in the ass even for his own sake.

The problem was who we hired afterward.