College football: Stanford hires Tavita Pritchard as its head coach

Stanford football has brought in a familiar face to become its next head coach.

The school announced Friday that it had hired Tavita Pritchard, who played quarterback for Stanford from 2006 to 2009, to be its next head coach. The 38-year-old is currently the Washington Commanders quarterbacks coach and will begin his role as head coach immediately after the team’s game against the Denver Broncos. 

Pritchard is taking over for interim head coach Frank Reich, who replaced Troy Taylor in the spring after Taylor was dismissed for allegations of bullying and belittling staff. 

Pritchard was hired by the man who replaced him at quarterback at Stanford: Andrew Luck. Luck is the school’s general manager and said that Pritchard is the right person to lead Stanford into its next great era. 

“Winning in college football today requires a leader of men who can build and motivate teams, recruit future stars, and develop and connect with talent,” Luck said in a statement.

“Tavita Pritchard is exactly the right head coach at the right time to help us build on the foundation of this season and lead Stanford football to its next great era. Coach Pritchard is a culture builder, a teacher of football of the highest caliber, and a humble yet determined servant leader who is committed to the success of Stanford’s student-athletes.”

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“I could not be more excited to welcome Tavita, Caroline and their family back to campus.”

Pritchard began his coaching career in 2010 at Stanford as a graduate assistant and worked his way up the ranks to become the team’s offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach in 2022 before departing for the NFL. 

Pritchard’s short stint in the NFL was impactful, as Commanders head coach Dan Quinn offered high praise for his former assistant. 

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“Tavita will be a fantastic head coach, and I believe he will be especially effective at Stanford. Players gravitate to him, and he quickly earned their respect and mine,” Quinn said in a statement. 

“Tavita is smart, collaborative, diligent and he brings people together. He is the perfect coach to build a winning program in today’s college football landscape.”

Pritchard will be tasked with turning around a team that is 4-7 this season, and has not had more than four wins in a season since 2018, when it went 9-4.

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