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When Tulane Director of Athletics Rick Dickson began his quest for a football coach in December of 2006 that could turn around the fortune of the Tulane football program, he searched all over the nation for a candidate who had achieved success at the highest level of collegiate football and could also meet the expectations of graduating high caliber student-athletes from Tulane University. His search concluded at the doorstep of Bob Toledo, a coach who not only met the criteria, but was the perfect fit for the Green Wave football program. Toledo became the 37th head football coach in school history when he was formally introduced on Monday, December 11, 2006. Toledo begins his third season at Tulane and his 16th campaign as a head coach in 2009. He sports a career coaching record of 84-86 (.494), and a mark of 6-18 in two seasons with the Green Wave. Toledo's second-year squad got off to a solid start with a 2-2 mark following a pair close losses to #13 Alabama and a setback in the final minutes to #14 East Carolina, and wins over in-state rival ULM and Conference USA foe SMU. However, devastating injuries began to mount beginning with the loss to Army, and TU did not crack the win column again. Tulane lost 17 players to season-ending injuries. Among the casualties was leading rusher Andre Anderson, who was named a Doak Walker Award candidate after rushing for 864 yards and seven touchdowns through seven games, and top receiver Jeremy Williams, who caught 27 passes for 437 yards and five scores in five games. Despite the adverse season, Tulane placed a combined three players on the All-Conference USA First and Second Teams and offensive lineman Troy Kropog, who played in the Under Armour Senior Bowl and was drafted in the fourth round by the Tennessee Titans, while center Michael Parenton signed a free agent contract with the New York Jets. During his first season at the helm of the Green Wave football program, Toledo may have guided Tulane to a 4-8 overall finish, but the final record was not a true indicator of how close the team was to its first bowl in five seasons. The Wave was not only picked to finish last in Conference USA's West Division, but was not expected to win a conference game according to the preseason coaches' poll. Tulane turned in a third-place finish in its division with a 3-5 league mark, but just missed out on a 5-3 year by six total points. In fact, the Green Wave dropped three games by a combined nine points and won two of its last three contests to close out the season. Despite the tough losses, Toledo still managed to lead Tulane into the national spotlight. Under his offensive philosophy, senior tailback Matt Forté rushed for a school record 2,127 yards, the seventh-best single season total in NCAA history, and he became the 12th player to surpass the 2,000-yard rushing plateau in a single year. Forté earned numerous All-America honors, including second team All-America honors, and was among the contenders for the Heisman Trophy, the Doak Walker and Maxwell Awards, and was named the national player of the week twice and played in the Under Armour Senior Bowl during his lone season under Toledo. Forté was drafted early in the second round (44th) by the Chicago Bears and became the sixth running back to be selected on a team coached by Toledo since 1974. Forté joined Karim Abdul-Jabbar (UCLA), DeShaun Foster (UCLA), Skip Hicks (UCLA), Lionel Manuel (Pacific) and Derek Williams (Cal-Riverside) to be drafted on a Toledo-coached team. A veteran coach of more than 36 years, Toledo has held head coaching posts at four different schools, including stints at Cal Riverside (15-6 with two championships from 1974-75), University of the Pacific (14-30 from 1979-82) and UCLA (1996-2002). He has coached in 13 bowl games during his career, including seven of the traditional New Year's Day bowls. Toledo, 63, came to Tulane from the University of New Mexico, where he spent the 2006 season as the assistant head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterback coach for the Lobos. During his one year stint in Albuquerque, he led UNM to a 6-6 overall record, a 4-4 finish in the Mountain West Conference (5th place) and to the inaugural New Mexico Bowl. Under Toledo's tutelage, sophomore running back Rodney Ferguson led the MWC in rushing with 1,132 yards, an average of 94.3 yards per game, and was named first team all-conference. Senior offensive guard Robert Turner and junior wide receiver Travis Brown also received first team accolades. UNM advanced to a bowl despite having to use three different quarterbacks for the first time in 15 years. Prior to New Mexico, Toledo spent seven years (1996-2002) as the head coach at UCLA where he compiled a 49-32 record overall. The Bruins produced a school-record 20-game winning streak, plus two Pac-10 titles, one Rose Bowl appearance and non-conference victories over Texas (twice), Alabama (twice), Michigan, Ohio State and Texas A&M. Under Toledo, UCLA went 10-2 in 1998, climbing to No. 2 in the national polls. The Bruins finished the regular season ranked fifth nationally in scoring offense (40.5) and eighth in total offense (482.6). They set school records for total offense (5,487 yards), passing yards (3,658) and passing touchdowns (29), and Toledo was a finalist for three Pac-10 Coach of the Year awards. Quarterback Cade McNown won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, presented to the nation's top senior quarterback, and finished third in balloting for the Heisman Trophy. He was the 12th player taken in the 1999 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. Offensive tackle Kris Farris won the 1998 Outland Trophy, awarded to the nation's top interior lineman, and was named first team All-America. The 1997 UCLA team finished 10-2 and ranked No. 5 in the nation after rallying to defeat Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl. The Bruins trailed the Aggies 16-0 before making a dramatic second-half comeback to win 29-23. UCLA averaged 40.7 points and more than 430 yards during the regular season. Defensively, the Bruins ranked second nationally in turnovers caused (39) and turnover margin (+1.8) and led the Pac-10 with 10 interceptions. Punter/place kicker Chris Sailer, offensive tackle Chad Overhauser, tailback Skip Hicks and free safety Shaun Williams were all named first team All-America. Prior to becoming UCLA head coach in January of 1996, Toledo was the Bruins' offensive coordinator for two seasons (1994-95) under Terry Donahue. Offensive tackle Jonathon Ogden won the Outland Trophy and tailback Karim Abdul-Jabbar was first team All-America in 1995. Toledo was offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for R.C. Slocum at Texas A&M for five years (1989-93). During that span, the Aggies posted a gaudy 49-12-1 record with three Southwest Conference titles and five straight bowl games, including three consecutive Cotton Bowl appearances. His 1990 Aggie offense still holds the school record for total yards in a single game (774 yards on 76 plays against Louisiana-Lafayette) and season game average with 471.1 yards per game that year. Toledo served as the offensive coordinator at Oregon for six seasons (1983-88), and helped tutor two of the Pac-10's most productive quarterbacks--Chris Miller and Bill Musgrave. Before his head coaching stint at Pacific, Toledo guided the secondary under John Robinson at Southern Cal from 1976-78. The Trojans went 31-6 in three seasons and were co-national champs after the 1978 campaign. Toledo's most heralded pupils included Dennis Thurman, Ronnie Lott and Dennis Smith. Toledo's first collegiate head coaching position was at Cal Riverside from 1974-75. The Highlanders were 15-6 and captured a pair of California Collegiate Athletic Association championships. Toledo's head coaching career began in 1970 at San Francisco's Riordan High School. His teams compiled a three-year record of 26-5-1 and won two Catholic Athletic League titles. A native of San Jose, Calif., Toledo was a heralded quarterback at Lincoln High School, leading the team to a 27-3 record during his three years as a starter. He enjoyed an outstanding collegiate career as a quarterback at San Jose City College followed by two seasons at San Francisco State in 1966-67. The Gators had a 16-5 record while Toledo was there, winning the Far Western Conference title his senior season. As a senior, Toledo earned Northern California Player of the Year honors and was named second team All-America. He completed 211 of 396 passes for 3,513 yards and 45 touchdowns, setting eight NCAA Div. II records. Toledo, who had a tryout with the San Francisco 49ers, was inducted into the San Francisco State University Hall of Fame in 1982 and the San Francisco State Gridiron Hall of Fame in 1996. Toledo and his wife, Elaine, have three daughters, Demetra, Christa and Alissa, and eight grandchildren. The Bob Toledo File TOLEDO YEAR-BY-YEAR
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