MOSCOW, Idaho — The University of Idaho announced on Wednesday they have hired former Vandal assistant Thomas Ford to be the university’s 37th Head Football Coach.
In a press release it said that Ford still needs to be approved by the Idaho State Board of Education.
He spent the 2022 and 2023 seasons as Idaho's special teams coordinator and running backs coach. Under Ford, Idaho's special teams and running back units were among the best in the FCS.
Ford spent the 2024 season as the running backs coach at Oregon State University. In 2024, the Oregon State rushing attack racked up 2,270 yards, led by Anthony Hankerson who had 1,082 yards and 15 touchdowns.
"First I would like to thank my wife Shannon and my kiddos for being the support system most dream of," Ford said. "I would also like to thank Terry Gawlik and Scott Green for the tremendous opportunity they have provided. I couldn't be more excited to be coming back to the Palouse. This place is truly special and want to continue the standard of excellence that has been set by Coach Eck. We're going to be aggressive in everything we do. Schematically on offense, defense, and special teams and especially in recruiting! We will continue bringing in high character athletes that will help us take the program to the next level.”
He spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons as the head coach at Simon Frasier University, an NCAA DII school in British Columbia. He led SFU to their first win in four seasons and was named the 2018 GNAC Coach of the Year.
He played four years of professional indoor football, winning a National Indoor Football League championship with Tri-Cities Fever in 2005.
