Cal Football Coaching Changes: Kevin Daft (Wide Receivers), John Krasinski (Strength & Conditioning) Out
Yes, the official scuttlebutt is that our maligned wide receivers coach has been let go ($). (UPDATE: Here's an official release on Daft's departure). Daft has had a tumultuous few years as a Golden Bear--his receivers never seemed to improve, often regressed, and was one part of a multi-layered equation that resulted in our offense bottoming out and becoming perhaps the next-to-worse in the Pac-10 by season's end. While he probably never got a fair shake (it's not easy to be a receivers coach with the poor quarterback and offensive line play Daft had to deal with), the dropped balls and poor quarterback-receiver connections seem to be a strike against Daft's coaching, fair or unfair.
The surprising coaching change is Krasinski, who was heavily involved in shaping the SAHPC weight facilities and also is known to assist with other athletic teams. This could be a budget issue--Krasinski is one of the highest paid coaches on the Cal staff (he was making around 140k in 2009, projecting to around 150k in 2010), and the Athletic Department is in penny-pinching mode. I find it hard to believe Tedford has anything but the highest regard for one of the few remaining members of the team he brought with him from Oregon in 2002 (he was given one of the highest honors for S&C only three years previous), and perhaps he wasn't the one making the decision.
However, based on some of the recent performances from 2007 to 2010, there does seem to be a lack of the physical toughness that characterized early Tedford teams, and that could start in the training room. The inability to keep up with teams when they get ahead could be a result of poor stamina or preparation. Additionally, guys were getting injured more than they probably should have been. Some of that does fall within the workout regimens of the strength and conditioning coach, and perhaps Tedford figured it was time to shake things up. We probably won't ever know the answer.
Whatever the circumstances, it's a shame that Krasinski won't be able to help train the Cal athletes in the facility both he and Tedford have dreamed about for ages. We wish both of these coaches the best of luck in finding new opportunities elsewhere.
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Good luck, Daft (you’re going to need it, dude).
And happy trails Krazinski.
Best of luck in all of your future endeavors.
"Today's weather, excessively violent with a chance of dismemberment. Tune in later for our 5-day forecast!"
~ Three Dog - Fallout 3
Daft will be fine. He’s a QB and a QB coach. That’s where he’ll end up. He’ll learn — he’s bright, young and personable. I could easily see him developing into an OC somewhere down the line.
Hector Sanchez: Underrated. Fighting body bias since the 2009 off season. I still love you, son, even if you're fat.
As a matter of fact going by results I’m quite certain he isn’t.
"Let me tell you a story. I was a political prisoner for two years. The instant I was released I ran to McDonald's. I had a Big Mac and a Coke.
It was fantastic."
-Toyama Koichi, US Presidential candidate from Japan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGZqOkeYbB0
thank god
our players will never more be distracted from their training regimen by his boyish charm and dashing good looks.

It’s a nice place for people to go watch your stupid [2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants].
As will that thing he does with his face
Email: bearsnecessities@gmail.com
by Avinash Kunnath on Dec 17, 2010 2:07 AM PST up reply actions
beat me
to the punch hahah
Don't Tread on Me.
by THESeymoreBear on Dec 17, 2010 8:59 AM PST up reply actions
and I was going to say
what are we going to do with pam, gonna be awkward at work now…
Don't Tread on Me.
by THESeymoreBear on Dec 17, 2010 9:00 AM PST up reply actions
I’m anxiously waiting to see what kind of candidate hire to replace both Daft and Marshall. Do we have any favorites for either position?
The strength and conditioning coach, while a loyal colleague it sounds like, I’m not so worried about. Seems like a position with lots of available dudes with amped up hormones.
"We lose to Stanford in many sports, but if you want to make a Cal team quit, bring a weapon."
--Coach Clark
I read this this morning, and immediately got up to go to work WAY sooner than I ever have.
Thank you, Coach Tedford. You’ve changed my life.
seriously though… so happy right now about Daft… Not sure why Krasinski is being let go, but if this really is a budget issue I hope this doesn’t turn out to bite us in the butt. I checked up on his credentials, and dude is LEGIT (owns THE highest accreditations in his profession). PLUS he helped design the SAHPC, so it’s sad he won’t see it in all its glory.
Thank you, John!
no cal bear? no care
This could be a cost cutting move only if they restructure and consolidate the department’s S&C coaches to work with all of the athletic programs in the SAHPC.
If the football program hires a new S&C coach just for football (which I can’t imagine them not doing), it’s doubtful a new hire will save any money. Therefore, it’s most likely a performance-related issue.
Recruiting updates on Twitter
by CaliforniaEternal on Dec 17, 2010 8:23 AM PST reply actions
Possibly.
Like most coaching stories, we’ll probably never get the truth of what went down, and it’s for the best. Tedford’s always very respectful like that—I can’t remember him ever throwing a coach under the bus.
Email: bearsnecessities@gmail.com
by Avinash Kunnath on Dec 17, 2010 8:28 AM PST up reply actions
Classy, as usual.
I’m sure Tedford will say “Coach K has found a new opportunity elsewhere and we wish him the best and thank him for his service” or “Coach K has decided to spend more time with his family and we wish him the best and thank him for his service” or something similar. This is one of the things I like about Tedford the most.
I think it’d be funny if, just once, Tedford just let it all out and was like “I fired coach K because he was such a little BITCH all the time I mean COME ON!!!”
It’s a nice place for people to go watch your stupid [2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants].
by Spazzy Mcgee on Dec 17, 2010 9:06 AM PST up reply actions 2 recs
I seriously wonder if Coach Tedford reads CGB.
It seems like many of the changes proposed on here have been made. (i.e. Marshall, Daft, showing more emotion) Chicken or the egg?
Anyways, with all the great news in recruiting, I was afraid that the “re-examining of the program during the offseason” that Tedford promised was going to be lost or forgotten.
Glad that he’s following through.
I’d like to think the changes were obvious enough for him to make on his own. Or his subordinates read CGB. lol
no cal bear? no care
by EchoOfSilence on Dec 17, 2010 9:08 AM PST up reply actions
He obviously does
CGB was the only Cal site in 2007 saying that perhaps Longshore was still starting over Riley because… oh, Riley might not be as good as we all think. Every other Cal site was saying that Riley should have started in 2007 because, oh, you know, he was the next Aaron Rodgers. That’s too coincidental to be coincidence.
And I think Tedford is smart enough (or a least not dumb enough) to realize that we’re all a lot smarter than him; hence, why he is making all these changes we have suggested on the blog. We could be head coaches too. I mean, we have some pretty hefty analysis going on over here (Go for it on 4th and 1; Never kick field goals because Tavecchio is inconsistent; Show some emotion because it makes fans feel like you actually care about winning!). I’m not exactly sure why Barbour hasn’t fired Tedford yet and hired me or any of us yet. Seriously. I have hundreds of hours of experience playing Madden and NCAA Football on an xbox. That’s a lot more than Tedford has, I bet.
(No, Tedford doesn’t read CGB. The few times we’ve introduced ourselves to him, he’s claimed ignorance of who and what we are.)
www.californiagoldenblogs.com
by HydroTech on Dec 17, 2010 9:43 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs
Proof positive he DOES read CGB
The few times we’ve introduced ourselves to him, he’s claimed ignorance of who and what we are
If he didn’t read CGB, he’d make up something to be nice. Since he didn’t, he clearly does read CGB but doesn’t want to admit it!
No, Tedford doesn’t read CGB. The few times we’ve introduced ourselves to him, he’s claimed ignorance of who and what we are
He told me that pursuant to Court Order I had to stay at least 100 feet away from him at all times.
The author, who has 35 years’ consulting experience, has taught at University of California Berkeley, where he was able to observe the culture and the way the senior management operates.
www.CaliforniaGoldenBlogs.com
i am coach tedford
i love cgb
get off me bandwagoners!
http://www.cleancutmedia.com
by cleancutmedia on Dec 17, 2010 11:52 AM PST up reply actions 2 recs
I think what’s more likely is that if idiots like me can see problems with our team, then Tedford is definitely seeing them up close and personal and knows what needs to be rectified.
As flattering as it would be, I’d think much much less of him as a coach if he’s basing his personnel decisions off our CGB roundtables.
Email: bearsnecessities@gmail.com
by Avinash Kunnath on Dec 17, 2010 10:29 AM PST up reply actions
You’re not an idiot…
It’s a nice place for people to go watch your stupid [2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants].
by Spazzy Mcgee on Dec 17, 2010 11:25 AM PST up reply actions
HI COACH
It’s a nice place for people to go watch your stupid [2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants].
by Spazzy Mcgee on Dec 17, 2010 11:22 AM PST up reply actions
I’m betting he was too moral. We need more ‘roids, and he’s apparently not the guy to get that done.
Sadly, today, Bill Plashke in the LA Times decided to compare Tedford to Alosi!
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/dec/16/sports/la-sp-plaschke-20101217
Funny that Plashke wasn’t beating those same drums all that loudly with all the funny stuff that had been going down a couple of miles away from the LA Times building in the Coliseum…
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is
research."
I think the link is busted, try this one.
It’s BS, it’s obvious this guy knows nothing about Coach Tedford, for anyone who does knows he is a class act. He’s never thrown a coach under the bus, nor a player, he’s never run up a score, unloaded on a reporter, or commit any NCAA violation. And the buzz has been out there for years that parents love Tedford after meeting him during recruiting trips. They feel he will take care of their kids and mold them into respectable men, not just athletes.
Truly knowledgeable writers like Ted Miller of ESPN’s Pac 10 blog have always had high praise for Tedford’s character and, IIRC, thought it was completely plausible that Tosh could have acted alone (but also noted perhaps not without the knowledge of Pendergast, but that’s another story).
I know these stories are hard to ignore since it’s blatantly ignorant and false, but fast-forward a year or two from now and nobody will remember this incident.
[Cal is] a fabulous university with a football program that typically has precious few and very fleeting brushes with success but a great many unions with failure.
--Monte Poole, Oakland Tribune, 11-30-2010
by SonofCalifornia on Dec 17, 2010 8:51 PM PST up reply actions
Agreed!
Typical pot stirring article…but usually not from someone like Plaschke. I would have expected this crap from TJ Simers, but he’s having too much fun bitching about how fucked up the Dodgers are right now.
Funny that the Times’ college beat writer, Dufresne, didn’t set him straight about Tedford, but, then again, he’s been carrying water for Carroll’s Trojans for years. There’s no way the Times can continue to afford to upset the one pro football team left in LA.
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is
research."
by Auricursine on Dec 17, 2010 11:15 PM PST up reply actions
Are you kidding?? Simers is a bit of a provocateur, but he at least has a coherent point of view. Plaschke is ALL demagogic bullshit, ALL the time. All he does is stir the pot with mock outrage. If he were an internet commenter, he’d be banned most places for being a troll.
sanity thief
by atomsareenough on Dec 18, 2010 1:26 PM PST up reply actions
In all honesty, I usually ignore Plaschke’s stuff, so in many respects, I find it uninteresting to begin with.
But whereas Simers can’t be missed in his spot on Page 2, when you see a photo of Tedford for no obvious reason, you’re suddenly forced to go back and read why he merits mention at all…
Then, as you’re noting, you discover Bill the Troll. ;oP
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is
research."
After years of faithful readership, I cancelled my subscription to the Times a few years ago because of these clowns. There are still some folks, such as Steve Lopez, I respect on the news side, but the sports section has become a joke. What a shame, too, because it used to be the envy of the nation.
Go Bears!
by California Pete on Dec 18, 2010 8:26 PM PST up reply actions
Does anyone think Akeli Smith might get a promotion to WR coach?
What is anyone hearing regards to potential replacements for the three coaching vacancies?
Hector Sanchez: Underrated. Fighting body bias since the 2009 off season. I still love you, son, even if you're fat.
Highly unlikely. Right now he’s an administrative assistant with only one year in the program and a short stint before that coaching quarterbacks as Grossmont College.
"Let me tell you a story. I was a political prisoner for two years. The instant I was released I ran to McDonald's. I had a Big Mac and a Coke.
It was fantastic."
-Toyama Koichi, US Presidential candidate from Japan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGZqOkeYbB0
Being a player and being a coach do not necessarily take the same skillset…
by Missing Barry on Dec 17, 2010 2:06 PM PST up reply actions
He’s coaching at a lower college level right now and producing some decent WR squads.
Then, I’ll make a big ruckus, because I am a hypocritical asshole.
-TwistNHook
can’t be worse than the Kevin Daft QB—>WR experience and we’ve seen great things recruiting from New Blue Tosh. I imagine having street credentials, perhaps more so than any other position on the field, is key to getting The Message across, even if The Message is the same.
"We lose to Stanford in many sports, but if you want to make a Cal team quit, bring a weapon."
--Coach Clark
can’t be worse than the Kevin Daft QB—>WR experience
Eric Kiesau/Chip Kelly didn’t even play offense in college/successfulcoacheswhoneverevenplayed
Writing off a coach because he didn’t play the position is asinine, and there are so many better reasons to write off Daft.
"Let me tell you a story. I was a political prisoner for two years. The instant I was released I ran to McDonald's. I had a Big Mac and a Coke.
It was fantastic."
-Toyama Koichi, US Presidential candidate from Japan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGZqOkeYbB0
I’m not and that isn’t my point. My point is that such a coach that has ZERO experience (coaching or playing at any level) at such a position shouldn’t be coaching such a position at a place like Cal and have that program.
"We lose to Stanford in many sports, but if you want to make a Cal team quit, bring a weapon."
--Coach Clark
I'm sad about Coach K leaving
IIRC it was Mack who had such effusive praises for him. And plus he was pivotal to the SAHPC. :(
In other words, Go Bears!
Yes, I also find this strange. I wonder if there are other factors beside performance (e.g. personal or organizational), because if I recall he was always highly regarded in the Cal Athletics organization. Whatever people might say about the Bears the last few years, I always felt that they were well conditioned and strong. ESPECIALLY given the state of the equipment and the facilities. I also feel like injuries haven’t been as high as other programs. I mean just look at UCLA who has been completely decimated by injuries the last five years.
Say it like Ron Burgandy signing off: "Stay Classy, Bears!"
by PlayClassyBears on Dec 17, 2010 1:45 PM PST up reply actions
Weve actually been ridiculously lucky with injuries. Riley was bad luck, but otherwise its been mostly pretty good.
The author, who has 35 years’ consulting experience, has taught at University of California Berkeley, where he was able to observe the culture and the way the senior management operates.
www.CaliforniaGoldenBlogs.com
While Cal fans should be encouraged that Tedford is taking steps to fix the program, he’s doing so long after it was apparent the moves had to be made.
That lack of recognition — or maybe he recognized it but declined to act — is one reason his team finished 8th.
I can’t help but wonder if more changes are coming, perhaps involving the playcalling and the strength program.
The Bears need to get more creative offensively and they need to get stronger/tougher everywhere in order to climb back into the top half of the conference.
Note that he “learns” that the S&C coach was let go 3 min after posting “Cal needs to improve their strength everywhere” (paraphrase).
I do, however, tend to agree with Tedford being overly loyal (in a business where there isn’t much as Uncle Ted noted)/slow to make key changes.
Of course, one could wonder why Kevin Daft, the UC Davis QB with a cup of coffee in the NFL and a little QB coaching for Cal, was even hired as the WIDE RECEIVERS coach in the first place.
"We lose to Stanford in many sports, but if you want to make a Cal team quit, bring a weapon."
--Coach Clark
I do, however, tend to agree with Tedford being overly loyal (in a business where there isn’t much as Uncle Ted noted)/slow to make key changes.
What? Do you realize that except for Gould and Thompson, we have an almost entirely different staff from 2007?
Tedford’s been pretty prompt to make solid changes that’ve helped improved our recruiting game (and recruiting is at least 75% of the college football battle).
Email: bearsnecessities@gmail.com
by Avinash Kunnath on Dec 17, 2010 10:55 AM PST up reply actions
Indeed, but couldn’t one say Gregory, Alamar, Daft, and I suppose even Marshall and Ludwig have had a fairly long leash given their units output and their qualifications to begin with? I mean, we definitely can’t say any of these weren’t given enough time to do their thing.
What’s your prediction for OC next year? Ludwig (as is), a new guy with full play-calling abilities, or a new guy with Tedford calling plays?
"We lose to Stanford in many sports, but if you want to make a Cal team quit, bring a weapon."
--Coach Clark
Marshall had 2 years.
How long should a coach have until you cut him? 1 year? 3 games?
It probably feels overly loyal to you because you want to start hiring/firing at the first sign of trouble. You want to see those losses turn into wins right away.
Everybody wants positive changes as soon as possible but I think an HC has to give his coaches time to see how they play out. Will you get some losses / failed production in the mean time? Possibly. But recruiting great coaches isn’t exactly peanuts either. I think JT gave them a fair chance and some leash to work with. I wouldn’t characterize it as being overly loyal.
Plus, if you go and fire guys constantly when they don’t perform right from the start, who’s going to want to come coach at the program? It’s a really in depth issue with a whole lot of factors at play, and not one easily analyzed by us armchair coaches….
by Missing Barry on Dec 17, 2010 12:58 PM PST up reply actions
I’m all for (1) hiring great people who are highly qualified, (2) giving them a lot of leeway to succeed, (3) providing them with the resources they need, and (4) keeping them/making sure they’re happy. I’m not sure that can be said by Cal Football at all times. Seems like there’s been a bit of (1) & (3), a lot of (2), and none of (4).
So, re: Marshall I look at it like this: has extensive major D1 football experience on some solid Tennessee, Va Tech, and Colorado teams (among others), as well as the NFL, but he also was in charge of the unit that gave up the most sacks evair (Houston Texans). Resume was a mile wide and an inch deep. No, letting him stay a 2nd year was fine but also letting him go after 1 year also would have been fine. I really can’t believe Colorado wants him.
"We lose to Stanford in many sports, but if you want to make a Cal team quit, bring a weapon."
--Coach Clark
none of (4)?
Who has left because Cal hasn’t made sure they’re happy? If my memory serves me correctly, the only assistant coaches that have left without being fired/forced out have left for either their alma mater or a higher position. I don’t see anyone anyone leaving because they’re unhappy.
Indeed, that’s kind of hard to know for sure as the people staying might not make the news anyway.
I suppose Ludwig was considered/rumored for a UNLV head coaching job?
Cortez left for Calgary (again)
Michalczik left for the OC job at UDub (he’s a Wazzu grad) but he didn’t even coach a practice before signing up with the Raiders of all people.
Cignetti is actually a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania (wut?) but was born in the lovely town of Pittsburgh. His father coached at Pitt’s rival (West Virginia).
Gregory is actually a graduate of Wazzu but left to take a lower position at Boise St, but was the DC for Boise St for 1 season.
Out of all, it felt like the ones that got away were Cortez and Michalczik, the latter of which seems like he would still be coaching at Cal if he had more $.
"We lose to Stanford in many sports, but if you want to make a Cal team quit, bring a weapon."
--Coach Clark
Indeed, but couldn’t one say Gregory, Alamar, Daft, and I suppose even Marshall and Ludwig have had a fairly long leash given their units output and their qualifications to begin with?
I really don’t think Gregory deserves to be mentioned along with the rest of these names. Frustrating as they may have been, Gregory’s defenses were on average quite effective. It made sense to let him go/allow him to go following the 2009 collapse, but not before.
"Let me tell you a story. I was a political prisoner for two years. The instant I was released I ran to McDonald's. I had a Big Mac and a Coke.
It was fantastic."
-Toyama Koichi, US Presidential candidate from Japan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGZqOkeYbB0
some wanted him gone after the 2007 collapse. Then, under pressure and to his credit, he reinvented his defense a bit so that if featured Zach Follett. Good results for the 2008 season, but we haven’t been able to find a replacement for Follett and, one could argue, we still have some fairly sizable pieces for a 4-3 defense anyway. The 2008 defense then led to a 2009 defense that played a lot of zone coverage. Moreover, the driving force for the 3-4 was “it’s easier to find LB recruits” while not really realizing that the key to such a defense is to also find a rare recruit: a good, massive 3-4 NT with enough depth so that when such a player goes down with the inevitable lower leg injury there’s a decent replacement to not have the interior line get caved in. Maybe it’ll work itself out. Seems like a lot of the LB/DE recruits really like it, and Tosh has done a wonderful job recruiting.
The point being is that he had a fair amount of leeway. Definitely wasn’t a quick hook. In fact, he never got the hook at all by leaving on his own terms late in the offseason.
"We lose to Stanford in many sports, but if you want to make a Cal team quit, bring a weapon."
--Coach Clark
He's worked all over with the offense
He was a graduate assistant with the O-line for three years, then QB coach in 2007, and WR coach until now.
"Some people watch adult videos on their computer - I go to YouTube and watch Jahvid Best highlight clips. That’s what gets me going."- Jim Schwartz, Detroit Lions head coach
by Berkelium97 on Dec 17, 2010 11:22 AM PST up reply actions
I know…which makes me think (attn: SPECULATION!!111) he was hired as WR coach because they didn’t have a spot for him anywhere else and didn’t want to lose him and his modest salary, not so much that he was the very best WR coaching candidate available.
It is worth being repeated that KA21 had high praise for Daft early in the season (“Best WR coach evair!!!”), which I thought was interesting considering he’s fairly new to the WR position and is a true freshman.
"We lose to Stanford in many sports, but if you want to make a Cal team quit, bring a weapon."
--Coach Clark
But last off-season
he changed offensive coordinator and ST coordinator. He can’t change the whole coaching staff (minus d-line and RB) every off season.
this post was meant to be a reply to Wilner's coment
that tedford takes too long to change
Wilner does say a lot of dumb things. I suspect it’s often on purpose.
by Missing Barry on Dec 17, 2010 11:00 AM PST up reply actions
http://insider.espn.go.com/college-football/recruiting/classrankings?&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fcollege-football%2frecruiting%2fclassrankings
Cal’ s class of 2011 recruits debut today on ESPN top 15
Go Bears!
by blueonblue on Dec 17, 2010 1:20 PM PST reply actions 2 recs
And notably
Above both Stanfraud and Oregon!!!
EAT THAT you annoying Oregon Ducks fans. BIGGEST. DOUCHEBAGS. EVER.
Say it like Ron Burgandy signing off: "Stay Classy, Bears!"
by PlayClassyBears on Dec 17, 2010 1:47 PM PST up reply actions

[Cal is] a fabulous university with a football program that typically has precious few and very fleeting brushes with success but a great many unions with failure.
--Monte Poole, Oakland Tribune, 11-30-2010
by SonofCalifornia on Dec 17, 2010 4:27 PM PST reply actions
Avery Walls LOI?
Any word yet if Avery Walls signed his LOI? It was reported he would sign the LOI the day after his commitment, however I haven’t heard any news about it since then.

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