Oakland Tribune: Tired of retiring, Foster returns to Cal sideline

By Dave Newhouse, STAFF WRITER

BERKELEY — Bob Foster — or Retiring Robert — has done it again. He has come out of retirement a third time, and he's back coaching at Cal, which begins spring football practice today.  Foster, 65, coached at Cal in 2002, Jeff Tedford's first year, then retired, he thought, for the last time.  "My wife told me, 'I married you for better or worse, but not for lunch. Get a job,'" he said. So after Justin Wilcox left Cal to become Boise State's defensive coordinator, Foster replaced him as the Bears linebacker coach.  "I'm not sure why I left the last time. Maybe that's why I'm back," he said, laughing. Actually, he felt fatigued from the long coaching hours, so he retired, even though Tedford told him to wait a few months, when he would feel rejuvenated.  Tedford was right, and Foster regretted his hasty decision. Now, this senior citizen, who jogs every day, is giving it another go, believing the hours won't be as long with Cal now an established program.  "You kind of wonder if you have a disease, you love it so much," Foster said of coaching. "I really missed the players, looking into those young eyes, that enthusiasm. It makes you feel younger, and I need to feel younger."  Tedford is delighted that Foster decided to return.  "Not only is he sound fundamentally and schematically, he is the most optimistic and positive person I've ever been around," Tedford said. "He always looks for the best in a young man, always willing to give him the benefit of the doubt."

Tedford and Foster were the offensive and defensive coordinators together at Oregon in the late 1990s. Then Foster retired a second time. Thus, Tedford has talked him out of retirement twice. Foster's first retirement came in 1992 after four years as UC Davis head coach, a 30-11-1 record and two Division II playoff appearances. Dan Hawkins, now the Colorado coach, talked him into joining him at Willamette as an adviser for three years. Then Oregon called, Cal called and Cal called again. Retiring Robert hasn't said how long he will stay in his fourth time around in a 38-year coaching career. Remarkably, he hasn't had a losing season in all that time. "All these changes have been kind of fun, really," he said. "I started doing a lot of the cooking, but my golf was driving me crazy. So I decided this would be a great thing to do."  Once again.