Former UCLA interim coach Tim Skipper has agreed to a deal to be the new head coach of Cal Poly Football, according to a news release by Cal Poly Athletics on Wednesday.
Skipper took over the UCLA coaching job this season after an 0-3 start, and led the team to a win over then-ranked Penn State, going 3-6 over his tenure.
“I am extremely excited to become the next head football coach at Cal Poly and want to thank Carter Henderson and President Armstrong for entrusting me with this opportunity,” Skipper said in the release.
The move comes less than two weeks after Cal Poly announced that they would be parting ways with former head coach Paul Wulff, who had spent three seasons leading the program.
READ MORE: Breaking: Cal Poly Football parts ways with head coach Paul Wulff
Skipper is the first major hire for Cal Poly’s new Athletic Director Carter Henderson, who started in October of this year.
“I believe deeply that our student-athletes will benefit greatly from the culture he develops, his deep football knowledge and his infectious enthusiasm, and I look forward to partnering with him,” Henderson said in the release.
In 2024, Skipper was the interim head coach at Fresno State, where he had a 6-6 regular season record and a bowl appearance for the Bulldogs.
He has experience in the Big Sky, serving as Sacramento State’s defensive coordinator from 2004-2005.
Skipper will inherit a Cal Poly team that went 4-8 in the shadow of a nearly complete Madden Center, a football-only facility that is set to be completed this offseason. His work begins right away, as Cal Poly will look to begin recruiting for his first season as head coach starting in August 2026.
A press conference introducing Skipper will take place Monday, Dec. 8 at 10:30 a.m. inside the Cal Poly Performing Arts Center.