Cal Poly names new football head coach

Author

Carly Heltzel
December 04, 2025

Good morning. It’s Thursday, and I’m reading a guide to all the best holiday activities in San Luis Obispo. Onto the five Cal Poly, SLO and California stories you need to know for today.

1.

Cal Poly named its new football head coach just two weeks after firing the old one. Former interim coach for UCLA Tim Skipper will lead the team into next season. Skipper took over the UCLA team mid-season this fall and turned their record from no wins to three wins, including an upset over football giant Penn State. Cal Poly’s athletic director said Skipper will benefit the team culture with “deep football knowledge and his infectious enthusiasm.”

2.

The Trump administration said it will withhold funding that helps states distribute food assistance money from the 21 mostly Democratic states who refused to give up the personal data of recipients including birthdays, addresses and Social Security numbers. In California, one of the states who refused to give up the data, this federal aid is distributed through CalFresh benefits, also know as EBT. The Department of Agriculture wants the data to compare it across states and “root out this fraud.” 

3.

A new sorority is coming to Cal Poly. The current chapter presidents unanimously voted to approve Pi Beta Phi’s establishment on campus. The sorority will be a part of the official rush in the fall after recruiting leadership. Pi Beta Phi has 131 chapters across the U.S. and their philanthropy focuses on literacy in children. 

4.

A car struck a 56-year-old man riding an e-bike without a helmet, causing “severe head trauma” and sending him to the hospital Tuesday afternoon. The incident occurred near the intersection of Broad and South streets. No drugs or alcohol are suspected and the 29-year-old woman that hit him was cooperative at the scene.

5.

If you’re a Trader Joe’s holiday treat lover, you may have notice one notable seasonal item missing from shelves this year: Candy Cane Joe Joe’s. Start the mourning process now, because they’re not coming. TJ’s axed the item after quality review tests came back subpar, saying they “simply didn’t meet our standards.” A few customers who bought them early, before they were recalled, said the minty Joe Joe’s tasted “off” and “like toothpaste,” though its not clear what the official quality reason was.