Cal had its most success since World War II under Jeff Tedford, who will help pick the 12 teams for the College Football Playoff
Cal will have a familiar face on the College Football Playoff selection committee for the next three years because former Golden Bears head coach Jeff Tedford was named to the 13-person CFP selection committee on Monday.
Cal has high hopes under first-year Tosh Lupoi, and if the Bears do well enough in 2026 to earn consideration for inclusion in next year’s 12-team College Football Playoff, they will have a person who can empathize with Cal’s position in Tedford. The 64-year-old Tedford will be part of the panel that will decide which 12 teams get into the College Football Playoff and how those teams will be seeded, starting with the 2026 season. Tedford was Cal’s head coach for 11 seasons from 2002 to 2012, and holds the Cal football coaching records for most seasons coached, most games won , and most bowl appearances . Cal won five of the eight bowl games Tedford coached in. The Bears earned a share of the Pac-10 title in 2006, which is the Bears only conference title since 1958, and they were ranked No 4 in the final regular-season poll of 2004, only to be denied a berth in the Rose Bowl in controversial fashion. Cal finished ranked in the top 25 three times under Tedford, and they were ranked in the top 25 at one point in six of his 11 seasons. He was fired at Cal following the 2012 season, when the Bears 2-9, and since then the Cal football program has not reached the elite national level that it enjoyed under Tedford. Teford was later the head coach at Fresno State from 2017 to 2019 and again from 2022 to 2023, recording a 45-22 record with the Bulldogs while winning conference titles in two of his five seasons.Tedford has returned to the Cal campus on several occasions and was honored during Cal home football games in recent years. Former Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn as well as Louisiana athletic director Bryan Maggard were also added to the CFP selection committee. The addition of Tedford and Malzahn gives the selection committee four former head coaches, along with Mark Dantonio and Mike Riley. Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek will be back as the committee chairman, and the eight other selection committee members are Nebraska athletic director Troy Dannen, Utah athletic director Mark Harlan, sportswriter Ivan Maisel, Middle Tennessee State athletic director Chris Massaro, former standout football Randall McDaniel, former standout player Wesley Walls and Virginia athletic director Carla Williams.Jake Curtis worked in the San Francisco Chronicle sports department for 27 years, covering virtually every sport, including numerous Final Fours, several college football national championship games, an NBA Finals, world championship boxing matches and a World Cup. He was a Cal beat writer for many of those years, and won awards for his feature stories.Assessing the Win Total Predicted for Cal Football in 2026
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
No. 1 Cal Rugby Squad Beats Rival Saint Mary's in Impressive FashionCal heads into the postseason unbeaten, hoping to win its second straight national title
Read more »
Yamato Okadome Sizzles For Cal at NCAA Swim ChampionshipsThe Golden Bears' run of 15 consecutive top-2 finishes ends with a seventh-place effort
Read more »
Wake Forest Baseball Cruises Past Cal to Take 2-0 Series LeadThe Demon Deacons have already clinched the series over the Golden Bears
Read more »
4-Star Safety Recruit Myles Baker Revealing Commitment Between Oregon, LSU, CalFour-star safety recruit Myles Baker is announcing his decision on Sunday.
Read more »
Former Dolphins Picks (And Other Former Players) Trying to Revive Career in UFLFormer second-round pick Cam Smith is set to make his UFL debut Sunday night
Read more »
A Compton high school is a leader in meeting these UC and Cal State requirementsStudents who take these courses are more likely to go to college straight after high school. A high school in Compton is a state leader.
Read more »