Andrew Luck almost retired one year earlier. Entering the 2018 season — his seventh with the Indianapolis Colts — fresh off of a 2017 campaign spent on the sidelines due to a shoulder injury, Luck had serious questions about his future.
Then came new coach Frank Reich, who had a hand in convincing Luck to stick around for at least one more go.
“Frank preached trusting the process and trusting getting better every day,” Luck said at Reich’s introductory press conference as Stanford’s interim head coach Tuesday. “I tried to embody that, and we did. I think I remember that training camp, by the time the season had rolled around, I don’t think I had thrown a pass more than 40 yards in practice. I didn’t know if I could. But we just kept trusting our process.”
Under Reich’s guidance, Luck was named the 2018 NFL Comeback Player of the Year while posting a career-high 98.7 passer rating. The Colts made it to the NFL Playoffs after a 1-5 start to the regular season. Luck’s delayed decision to step away from playing football finally came in August 2019.
Now Luck, in his role as Stanford’s general manager, is entrusting Reich with a different project: keeping Cardinal football afloat.
Reich was named Stanford’s interim head coach on Monday. During his introductory press conference on Tuesday, both Reich and Luck emphasized that Reich’s tenure will not extend beyond the 2025 season.
“This is the perfect scenario for both of us,” Reich said. “It fits absolutely perfect. Just because it’s a one-year deal does not mean that we can’t take a major step to helping fulfill this vision and have massive success.”
Stanford hires Frank Reich: Ex-NFL coach will serve as interim boss for one season under unique agreement
Will Backus
Stanford, under normal circumstances, is a difficult job. The Cardinal have not won more than four games since 2018. The university’s rigorous academic standards limit the talent pool that Stanford can draw from in both high school recruiting and the transfer portal.
But Reich is also inheriting a program rocked by university investigations that found former coach Troy Taylor mistreated female staffers and attempted to have a compliance officer removed for bringing up minor Level III violations committed by Taylor and his staff. Luck fired Taylor on March 25, less than a week after the investigations came to light.
“Even a week and a half ago I thought the direction for our program was different than where we are now,” Luck said. “But with time, like on many things, with new data points and a deeper and new perspective, I realized it was time for a reset at the head coaching position.”
The timing of Taylor’s firing, with Stanford set to open spring camp on the same day that Reich was introduced, factored heavily in Luck’s choice to settle on an interim now while planning a wider search for after the 2025 season.
And Reich is no stranger to immediate turnarounds. The Colts went without a winning record in three straight seasons leading up to Reich’s hiring, and he still took them to the postseason in two of his first three years.
Reich’s time in Palo Alto, California, might have a specific deadline, but Luck is hoping that the foundation set in 2025 stands firm.
“Principles and values and culture and taking a step forward, that’s enduring, and that’ll last,” Luck said. “That’s what we’re feeling and that’s what we’re preparing for. Frank’s here, the staff’s here. We’re doing something that will last in many ways.
“That’s why I have deep conviction that this will work.”
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