Tim Skipper - Football Coach

Tim Skipper

Title:
Interim Head Coach
Email:
HeadFootballCoach@mail.fresnostate.edu
Phone:
559-278-3015

THE SKIPPER FILE

PERSONAL INFORMATION
Hometown: New Orleans, La.

EDUCATION
Fresno State
Bachelors degree in communications (2001)

COACHING HISTORY
Fresno State
July 2024-December 2024: Interim Head Coach
2022-23: Linebackers/Assistant Head Coach
Central Michigan
2021: Assistant Head Coach/LB
2020: Linebackers
UNLV
2018-19: Defensive Coordinator/LB
Florida
2017-18: Linebackers
2015-16: Running Backs
Colorado State
2013-14: Assistant Head Coach/LB
2012-13: Linebackers
Fresno State
2009-11: LB/Def. Run Game Coordinator
- Interim Defensive Coordinator (3 games)
2006-08: Running Backs
Sacramento State
2004-05: Defensive Coordinator/DB
2003: Defensive Backs
Western New Mexico
2002: Defensive Coordinator/DB
2001: Defensive Backs

PLAYING EXPERIENCE
Position: Linebacker
Fresno State: 1997-2000

Last Updated: January 21, 2025

Tim Skipper joined the Bulldog staff for his second stint as a Bulldogs’ coach on Dec. 23, 2021.

Skipper was named interim head coach on July 15, 2024 as Jeff Tedford announced he would be stepping down. The 2024 season is his third back on staff, serving as the linebackers coach and the assistant head coach in 2022 and 2023.

While taking over just a few weeks before the start of fall camp, Skipper coached the ‘Dogs to a 6-7 overall record. His record as Fresno State head coach is 7-7, having coached the team in the 2023 Isleta New Mexico Bowl.

In his one season as the interim head coach, Skipper coached the Bulldogs to their fourth bowl game in as many years. He became just the fourth first year head coach in Fresno State history to lead the team to bowl eligibility.

Fresno State had 11 All-Mountain West selections in 2024, its most in a season since the 2022 MW Championship season. Outside of the athletic achievements, Fresno State football also had its highest-ever semester GPA with a 3.35 team GPA in the Fall 2024 semester. The football team saw 93 student-athletes with above a 3.0, including 19 with 4.0s.

Skipper was named the head coach of the week on three occasions by 247Sports, the most honors by any coach in the Mountain West

In 2023, Skipper was called upon to lead the Bulldogs as acting head coach for the Isleta New Mexico Bowl while head coach Jeff Tedford temporarily stepped away to address health concerns. The former Bulldog student-athlete coached his alma mater to a 37-10 victory over New Mexico State in the bowl game, winning Fresno State’s fifth-straight bowl game.

His linebackers corp was one of the more consistent on the defense in 2023 behind veterans Levelle Bailey and Malachi Langley. Bailey was a second team All-Mountain West selection in his final year playing in a Bulldog uniform.

Skipper played a role in keeping local talent home on the recruiting front, receiving commitments from linebackers Logan Studt (Buchanan) and Tytus Khajavi (Clovis West) from the Class of 2024. Studt was the No. 2 overall local recruit in the Class of 2024.

His first year back at Fresno State was a memorable one as Fresno State became the first program in FBS history to start the season 1-4, and finish with 10 wins. Fresno State ended the year on a nine-game winning streak, and won the 2022 Mountain West Championship and the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl.

Fresno State’s defense was among the best in the conference in 2022, ranking No. 2 in scoring defense and No. 4 in total defense. A bulk of the defensive efforts came out of the linebackers room as Fresno State’s leading tackler in 2022 was senior Levelle Bailey with 88 tackles. Bailey also added 5.5 tackles for loss, seven broken up passes, and one forced fumble. Third on the team in tackles was linebacker Malachi Langley who finished the season with 68 stops.

Bailey and Langley were both All-Mountain West honorable mention linebackers.

Skipper joined the Bulldog staff for his second stint as a Bulldogs’ coach in transition from Central Michigan where he coached the linebackers from 2020-21. At CMU, he was elevated to the assistant head coach role in 2021 along with coaching the linebackers.

In 2020, Skipper led a linebacking unit that included standout Troy Brown, a first team All-Mid-American Conference honoree.

During his first six seasons at Fresno State, he coached running backs, linebackers and served as the defensive run coordinator.

The Bulldogs advanced to four bowl games during Skipper's first stint in Fresno, largely due to his development of all-conference linebackers Ben Jacobs and Travis Brown, and explosive running backs Ryan Mathews, Dwayne Wright, Lonyae Miller and Clifton Smith.

In 2008, Skipper's final season as the Bulldogs' running backs coach, three of his players turned in games of 150-plus yards, including Mathews, who ranked 10th in the country at the time of his October injury.

With Jim McElwain as offensive coordinator in 2007, Skipper's players averaged 4.7 yards per carry, and with 204.67 rushing yards per game, ranked No. 16 in the nation, helping the Bulldogs advance to the Humanitarian Bowl opposite Georgia Tech.

He has also had coaching stints at Florida, Colorado State, Sacramento State, UNLV and Western New Mexico.

Under Skipper, 11 players have been NFL draft picks. He has also coached up all-american and all-conference talent.

In 2014, he completed a Bill Walsh Minority Coaching Fellowship with the Miami Dolphins.

Skipper played his collegiate career at Fresno State. He was a four-year starter at Fresno State at middle linebacker from 1997-2000, he earned an appearance on both the 1999 and 2000 watch lists of the Butkus Award, presented annually to the nation's top linebacker. A two-year defensive captain and three-time All-WAC selection, he ranks second in school history with 418 career tackles, including 117 in his first campaign, when he earned freshman All-America recognition. Voted the team's most inspirational player as a senior in 2000.

He holds a bachelor's degree with a major in communications from Fresno State.

He comes from a family of coaches. His father, Jim, coached for four decades before his retirement in 2019. Tim's brother, Kelly, has been in the profession since 1989 and currently coaches running backs for the Buffalo Bills. Kelly was an All-American RB at Fresno State.