Texas A&M names Trisha Ford as new softball coach

BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Texas A&M hired 12-year head coaching veteran and four-time conference coach of the year Trisha Ford as the softball program’s 10th head coach, Director of Athletics Ross Bjork announced Tuesday. Ford comes to Aggieland following a six-year stint at the helm of Arizona State.

“Trisha Ford is viewed as one of the very best softball coaches in the country and has done a phenomenal job at every stop in her career,” Bjork said. “College sports is about recruiting, player development and helping the student-athletes reach their full potential on and off the field and we discovered that Coach Ford epitomizes what it takes to lead at the highest level. As two-time coach of the year in the Pac-12, a Pac-12 champion and Women’s College World Series coach, she knows what it takes to consistently compete for a championship. The more time we spent with Coach Ford, we realized that her grit, work ethic, passion, knowledge of the game, recruiting plan and connections all around the softball universe are a perfect fit for Texas A&M. We are excited to welcome Trisha, Eddie, Emma and EJ to Aggieland.”

Over her head coaching career, Ford has amassed a 397-226-1 (.686) record at Saint Mary’s (CA), Fresno State and Arizona State, including a 212-89 (.704) ledger with the Sun Devils. She has twice been named the Mountain West Coach of the Year (2015, 2016) and the Pac-12 Coach of the Year (2018, 2022).

Ford earned her second Pac-12 Coach of the Year honor last season after guiding ASU to its 17th-straight NCAA Tournament and the program’s 28th-consecutive winning season. The Sun Devils won their third Pac-12 Championship and first since 2011, winning a program-record 20 league games.

“First and foremost, I want to thank Ross [Bjork], Kristen [Brown] and Jeff [Toole] for the opportunity to lead the Texas A&M softball program,” Ford said. “After spending time with them and talking about their vision for the program, it was clear our values aligned. You can feel the pride and tradition that runs through Aggieland. My family and I will embrace it and I can’t wait for us to become a part of the community.

I also want thank Jo [Evans] for being not only a tremendous ambassador for our sport, but for the legacy she built at A&M. I am looking forward to embracing what she has built here and continue to move it forward. For me, this is a tremendous opportunity. Texas A&M is a place that is very special and the core values of A&M line up with mine both on and off the field. I have been on the other side of the 12th Man. They are a fan base that is envied across the entire country, and I am looking forward to seeing them at Davis Diamond. I am excited to put an elite product on the field and to hit the ground running.”

In six seasons with the Sun Devils, Ford mentored five All-Americans and 20 all-conference selections, including eight in 2022. Cydney Sanders earned Pac-12’s Freshman of the Year and NFCA First Team All-America honors, while Arizona State’s four first team selections were the most for the Sun Devils since 2012.

In 2018, Ford was named the Pac-12 Coach of the Year following a season that saw ASU make its 12th NCAA Women’s College World Series appearance. The Sun Devils finished the year with a 48-13 ledger that included a 16-8 mark in Pac-12 play. The 48 victories that season marked the most wins in a single season for ASU since winning 50 in 2013.

Prior to arriving in Tempe, Ford served a four-year stint as the head coach at Fresno State from 2013-16. She led the Bulldogs to back-to-back Mountain West Conference championships in 2015 and 2016, and was named the MWC Coach of the Year both years. She led the Bulldogs to consecutive 40-win seasons that included a 2016 campaign that saw Fresno State go 42-12-1 with an incredible 22-1 mark in MWC action. The Bulldogs went unbeaten that season through the month of April and recorded a then-nation-leading 23-game win streak, setting a school record for consecutive victories.

Ford spent nine years as an assistant coach with the Stanford Cardinal (2004-12), including four seasons as associate head coach. She helped guide Stanford to its greatest run in school history and a 385-155 (.713) overall record.

Prior to joining Stanford’s coaching staff, Ford spent two seasons as the head coach at her alma mater Saint Mary’s College.

Arguably one of the best softball players in Saint Mary’s history, she is the only female student-athlete in school history to have her number (9) retired.

Ford graduated from Saint Mary’s with a degree in politics in 1999 and was inducted into the Gaels’ Hall of Fame in 2007. A native of Fremont, California, she earned nine varsity letters in softball, volleyball and basketball during her prep career at American High School.

Ford and her husband, Eddie, married in the summer of 2005, and have two children, Emma and EJ.