Stanford hires Pritchard as head coach

Stanford is hiring Tavita Pritchard as head coach, the school announced Friday.

Pritchard, 38, is the quarterbacks coach for the Washington Commanders. He played quarterback at Stanford before eventually serving as an assistant coach and offensive coordinator for the Cardinal from 2010-22.

The Tacoma, Washington, native will step into his new role immediately after the Commanders' game against the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

"Tavita Pritchard is exactly the right head coach at the right time to help us build on the foundation of this season and lead Stanford football to its next great era," Stanford general manager Andrew Luck said in a statement. "Coach Pritchard is a culture builder, a teacher of football of the highest caliber, and a humble yet determined servant leader who is committed to the success of Stanford's student-athletes."

Pritchard said, "I have a clear vision of the hard work, brotherhood, and tenacity it will take to build a championship Stanford football program. I cannot wait to partner with Andrew and begin working with the best student-athletes in the world to achieve excellence on and off the field."

The Cardinal have been searching for a full-time coach since dismissing Troy Taylor in March after two seasons. Taylor's firing came about a week after ESPN published the reports from two workplace misconduct investigations into allegations he'd bullied and belittled multiple female athletic staffers. The program hired Frank Reich as interim coach, and he led the Cardinal to a 4-7 record ahead of Saturday's regular-season finale against Notre Dame.