| Tim Skipper |
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Coaching Career:
Tim Skipper joined the Bulldog coaching staff on February 21, 2006 ... in his fourth season, Skipper continues to be an excellent coach and recruiter ... in his first year of coaching the linebackers, a position where he stared at as a Bulldog from 1997-2000 ... during the 2008 season, he coached three different running back who had games of 150-yards or more ... in 2007 he molded a true freshman running back into on of the nation's best as Ryan Mathews set the national standard for touchdowns by a freshman ... the Dogs averaged 4.7 yards per carry as a group and rank No. 16 in the NCAA in rushing yards per game (204.67) ... Fresno State had four different backs (Lonyae Miller, Clifton Smith, Anthony Harding and Mathews) who each produced 100-yard rushing games ... in the Humanitarian Bowl, the Bulldog running back rushed for 286 yards against Georgia Tech of the ACC ... the Dogs averaged 227 rushing yards in the last four games of the season ... in his first season as running backs coach, Skipper helped develop fourth round draft pick Dwayne Wright into the nation's 6th best rusher ... Wright finished his senior season with 1,462 yards and 11 touchdowns ... also coached senior Roshon Vercher at fullback, who went on to sign a free agent contract with the Arizona Cardinals ... spent the previous two seasons, prior to Fresno State as defensive coordinator at Sacramento State, where he also coached the defensive secondary ... was the Hornets' secondary coach in 2003 ... Under his direction, the Hornets produced the Big Sky Conference's leading tackler (Jimmy Ellingson), sack producer (Jacob Houston) and interception leader (Ramon Payne) ... prior to his tenure at Sacramento State, Skipper was the secondary coach at Western New Mexico University for two seasons ... served as the defensive coordinator at Western New Mexico for the 2002 season.
Player Career:
A former Bulldog standout, Skipper was a four-year starter at middle linebacker from 1997-2000 ... one of the smallest players in college football during his career ... a two-year defensive captain who earned Freshman All-America honors, was a three-time All-WAC performer ... was twice selected to the watch list for the Dick Butkis Award for the nation's top linebacker ...selected as the team's most inspirational player during his senior season ...named the Defensive Most Valuable player in the 2000 Silicon Valley Football Classic ... finished his career with 418 career tackles, second-most in school history ... As a junior in 1999, he led the Bulldog to a share of the Western Athletic Conference championship and the Las Vegas Bowl ... as a freshman in 1997, Hill's first season as head coach, Skipper recorded 117 tackles, 10th-most in Bulldog history.
Personal:
Skipper earned a degree from Fresno State in Communications in 2001, where he was an honor student ... a native of New Orleans, La., Skipper's older brother, Kelly, was a record-setting running back at Fresno State who later served as the Bulldogs running back coach and currently the assistant coach for the Oakland Raiders ... his father, Jim Skipper, has been a long-time running backs coach in the NFL, most recently serving as the Carolina Panthers' assistant head coach and running backs coach since 2002, and was the head coach of the San Francisco Demons of the XFL.
