HOUSTON, Texas - Fresno State head football coach Jeff Tedford was one of the seven finalists for the Paul "Bear" Bryant Coach of the Year Award that was in attendance at the Post Oak Hotel in Houston, Texas on Wednesday night.

Clemson's Dabo Swinney, who led the Tigers to its second national championship in the last three seasons, took home the award for the third time in his career, but Tedford and the Bulldogs were on the grandest of stages recognized for its unforgettable season in front of college football's elite.

Prior to the award being handed out, each finalist in attendance addressed the crowd, Tedford followed Swinney, the eventual winner and joked before congratulating him, "This alphabetical order thing is kind of bad following the national championship coach, tough act to follow ... Dabo congratulations to you and your team. What a phenomenal job. Fifteen wins in one season is unheard of and there's a lot of work that goes into that, I know."

Now in its 33rd year, the Coach of the Year Award recognizes the country's top college football coach for their contributions both on and off the field and is the only college coaching honor selected after all bowl games are concluded and is voted on by the National Sports Media Association.

"It's a true honor to be here tonight and to even be considered for this award with all these great coaches," Tedford said. "This is a very difficult profession and there's so many things involved in this profession. It's such an honor to be here and I'm so appreciative of it. But I'm really here to represent our University, our staff and our players. It is a true team effort."

Also in attendance as a finalist was Bill Clark (UAB), Josh Heupel (UCF) and Jeff Monken (Army). Also finalists but unable to make it were Brian Kelly (Notre Dame) and Nick Saban (Alabama).

All seven of the institutions that the respective head coaches represented owned double-digit wins in 2018. Tedford pointed out, and received an ovation from the crowd during his speech, was the fact that the Bulldogs became the first team in FBS history to suffer a double-digit loss season, and bounce back for back-to-back double-digit win seasons.

"There's nothing more gratifying then this last season," Tedford said. "There was a team that went 1-11, and they turnaround and win 22 games in two years. To see the joy on their faces when we won the conference championship and our bowl game, and they're jumping around and they're so happy, I have to believe that that's a life lesson in perseverance that they're going to take for the rest of their lives."

Coach Frank Beamer was the recipient of the 2019 Paul "Bear" Bryant Lifetime Achievement Award. Beamer coached the Virginia Tech Hokies for 29 years, and retired in 2015. Marc Bryant Tyson, Paul "Bear" Bryant's grandson, unveiled the winner of the award while John Rhadigan was the evening's emcee.

The event was televised live on FOX College Sports Pacific, FOX Sports Southwest, FOX Sports Oklahoma, FOX Sports North Plus and FOX Sports Wisconsin Plus.

"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" - The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160