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Cal football coach Tom Holmoe resigned Sunday, one day after a loss to Arizona gave the Golden Bears an 0-8 record and an 11-game losing streak dating back to last season. His resignation is effective after the 2001 season. 

Holmoe compiled a 15-37 record in five seasons at Cal. His best season was in a 1998, when his squad had a 5-6 record. In the end, too many losses did in the personable coach. 

“It was a great experience,” Holmoe said. “When I came in here five years ago as a head football coach, I had a plan to come in and build the program, build these young man into a team and into a group that would last for a long time. I had a plan to bring people along, not just the football players and coaches themselves, but the whole department and campus, to the point where we could continue on for a long, long time. I was not successful in that plan. The goals we had set did not come to fruition.” 

Holmoe added, “Any coach who’s in the business long enough knows he usually pays a price for a poor won-loss record, which we have, which falls on me.” 

When asked why he announced his resignation now instead of after the season, which has just three games to go, he said he wanted to take some pressure off his players and to give Cal more time to find its new coach.  

“I felt it was very important for the head football coach of this team to be with this team,” Holmoe said. “These are some very troubled times for our team. We’ve had a lot of different problems.” 

Holmoe said he will think about his future plans once his job at Cal is finally over. 

Athletic director Steve Gladstone didn’t want to talk about potential candidates but said he would like to wrap up the search by Christmas or Jan. 1. 

Gladstone did talk about his “empathy” for Holmoe and the football team’s struggles. 

“The decision was based on performance on the field, not the basic values that Tom has embodied and his staff has embodied and his players have embodied,” Gladstone said. “It is with respect and sadness that we accept Tom’s resignation.”