WHY is Jeff Grimes leaving a solid position as OC at BYU?

Some will say it's a lateral move, but I disagree.

Key factors probably are:

• Money
• Return to roots in Texas
• Money
• Big 12 instead of independent
• Money
• Bigger recruiting base at Baylor than BYU
• Money
• Advancement potential (Head coach at BYU is required to be Mormon--which Grimes is not--but other coaches don't have to be)
• Money
• Relationship with Aranda
• Money
• Access to Gut-Paks and other Texas BBQ

Probably money and relationships.

Follow the money and it is a great job in terms of location. While Waco isnt a Dallas/Ftw or Austin, it is on the booming 35 corridor and close to alot of things and in the middle of some of the best football recruiting territory in the US.

It's a step up in salary, a good fit culturally and a better opportunity to advance his career. Same reasons any of us leave one job for another.

BearlyBeloved said:

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WHY is Jeff Grimes leaving a solid position as OC at BYU?

Some will say it's a lateral move, but I disagree.

Key factors probably are:

• Money
• Return to roots in Texas
• Money
• Big 12 instead of independent
• Money
• Bigger recruiting base at Baylor than BYU
• Money
• Advancement potential (Head coach at BYU is required to be Mormon--which Grimes is not--but other coaches don't have to be)
• Money
• Relationship with Aranda
• Money
• Access to Gut-Paks and other Texas BBQ

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• Chip and Jojo
• Money
• Gar fishing
• George's Big O
• Money
• Facilities

You forgot Waco's staple "George's" and yeah money!

Went to a restaurant close to BYU a couple of years ago ... thought we'd stepped into Pleasantville.

So you don't view Baylor as an upgrade over BYU? Yes money matters, but we are a P5 program and BYU is not. We play in a reputable conference, BYU does not. Exposure at Baylor is higher than BYU's exposure (TV, Time Zone, national media, etc..). Add that to all the other things you mentioned and I would say it is an upgrade over his current situation.

Closer to home (Garland) and (possibly) his parents.

I posted a similar comment in another Grimes thread...but Grimes must feel pretty confident that he will have what he needs here at BU to get this offense rolling again. He's built a great reputation for himself as an OC at BYU. He's already starting to get looks at HC openings this off season.

So he wouldn't want to take on anything that might hurt the reputation he has established for himself. So he has to feel confident in the potential for BU to have one of the better offenses in the country again to make this leap in my opinion....which makes me really optimistic.

BU82EX said:

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So you don't view Baylor as an upgrade over BYU? Yes money matters, but we are a P5 program and BYU is not. We play in a reputable conference, BYU does not. Exposure at Baylor is higher than BYU's exposure (TV, Time Zone, national media, etc..). Add that to all the other things you mentioned and I would say it is an upgrade over his current situation.

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Maybe you missed these points in my post:

• Big 12 instead of independent
• Bigger recruiting base at Baylor than BYU

By contrast, BYU does have this advantage over Baylor: BYU fans show up big at road games everyplace in the country. BYU has a national following and church affiliation is a major part of that. There are other Baptist universities but BYU has a lock on the LDS fanbase which is distributed widely across the country.

FYI, I speak as a Baylor grad, Texas native and former Baptist, who is Mormon and now lives in Utah.

Baylor is completely different with regard to its affiliation. I dont think even most of Baylor's students are Baptist now, although I may be wrong about that. I dont think many casual college football fans know Baylor is Baptist. Everyone knows BYU is Mormon and the university itself is actually owned by the LDS. I'm not sure if due to it being owned by LDS it even has a Board other than the church hierarchy. Although surely it does have a seperate Board. Bearly Beloved can speak more to those issues.

Gosh I would think it would be easier to recruit some to BU than BYU.

Also doesn't he have ties to Coach A already?

Just listened to a Grimes interview. This guy is a state of Texas guy. I predict he'll rival Art in Offensive Production and winning. With Randa on D and Grimes on O, we could be in a great place. He's 52, I think, so if he does good and stays 3 years, we'll be fortunate.

This is very true. If every Baptist in America was a Baylor fan and sent generations and generations of their family to Baylor, we would have the alumni base throughout the country that BYU does.

Timbear said:

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Just listened to a Grimes interview. This guy is a state of Texas guy. I predict he'll rival Art in Offensive Production and winning. With Randa on D and Grimes on O, we could be in a great place. He's 52, I think, so if he does good and stays 3 years, we'll be fortunate.

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I would wait and see what plans he has to install and how long they will take to learn. From what I read it's a simple playbook but has a lot of jet sweeps and pre-snap formation changes. It is high production, but it has been called a power spread with heavy emphasis on big linemen and run plays. He most likely be very productive his first year here, but I expect bigger results in his second year.

Bear8084 said:

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Timbear said:

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Just listened to a Grimes interview. This guy is a state of Texas guy. I predict he'll rival Art in Offensive Production and winning. With Randa on D and Grimes on O, we could be in a great place. He's 52, I think, so if he does good and stays 3 years, we'll be fortunate.

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I would wait and see what plans he has to install and how long they will take to learn. From what I read it's a simple playback but has a lot of jet sweeps and pre-snap formation changes. It is high production, but it has been called a power spread with heavy emphasis on big linemen and run plays. He most likely be very productive his first year here, but I expect bigger results in his second year.

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I think that's a pretty fair way to look at it. The bar is so low that I'm sure we will see improvements next year....but I don't expect us to be melting scoreboards in the first year of a new offense with a new QB.

(So PSA....let's hold off on the fire Grimes threads after the first few games)

boognish_bear said:

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Bear8084 said:

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Timbear said:

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Just listened to a Grimes interview. This guy is a state of Texas guy. I predict he'll rival Art in Offensive Production and winning. With Randa on D and Grimes on O, we could be in a great place. He's 52, I think, so if he does good and stays 3 years, we'll be fortunate.

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I would wait and see what plans he has to install and how long they will take to learn. From what I read it's a simple playback but has a lot of jet sweeps and pre-snap formation changes. It is high production, but it has been called a power spread with heavy emphasis on big linemen and run plays. He most likely be very productive his first year here, but I expect bigger results in his second year.

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I think that's a pretty fair way to look at it. The bar is so low that I'm sure we will see improvements next year....but I don't expect us to be melting scoreboards in the first year of a new offense with a new QB.

(So PSA....let's hold off on the fire Grimes threads after the first few games)

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You know they are coming...people want production out of the gate

He's likes fixer uppers,,,

Also (and this cannot be understated), he does not have to pretend to be Mormon. Now, he has to abstain from drinking and say he's Baptist! LOL

Bear8084 said:

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BearlyBeloved said:

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WHY is Jeff Grimes leaving a solid position as OC at BYU?

Some will say it's a lateral move, but I disagree.

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• Chip and Jojo
• Money
• Gar fishing
• George's Big O
• Money
• Facilities

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Be careful what you wish for...

[url=https://www.4shared.com/photo/0wQHAc0Dba/gar.html][/url]

BearlyBeloved said:

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BU82EX said:

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So you don't view Baylor as an upgrade over BYU? Yes money matters, but we are a P5 program and BYU is not. We play in a reputable conference, BYU does not. Exposure at Baylor is higher than BYU's exposure (TV, Time Zone, national media, etc..). Add that to all the other things you mentioned and I would say it is an upgrade over his current situation.

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Maybe you missed these points in my post:

• Big 12 instead of independent
• Bigger recruiting base at Baylor than BYU

By contrast, BYU does have this advantage over Baylor: BYU fans show up big at road games everyplace in the country. BYU has a national following and church affiliation is a major part of that. There are other Baptist universities but BYU has a lock on the LDS fanbase which is distributed widely across the country.

FYI, I speak as a Baylor grad, Texas native and former Baptist, who is Mormon and now lives in Utah.

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So it sounds like you answered your own question as to why he left. Maybe another factor was his belief system (and I'm not talking football). Sounds like he is a Christian and not a Mormon, which could have been the deciding factor. Who knows?

McBeezy2018 said:

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Also (and this cannot be understated), he does not have to pretend to be Mormon. Now, he has to abstain from drinking and say he's Baptist! LOL

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Wait.. You have to abstain from alcohol in order to be Baptist?

I thought you just had to lie!

Timbear said:

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Just listened to a Grimes interview. This guy is a state of Texas guy. I predict he'll rival Art in Offensive Production and winning. With Randa on D and Grimes on O, we could be in a great place. He's 52, I think, so if he does good and stays 3 years, we'll be fortunate.

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I hope you are proven correct. An offense that rivals the ones under Art and Kendal Briles would be exciting to watch, both at McLane Stadium, as well as on cable TV.

Jorkel said:

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boognish_bear said:

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Bear8084 said:

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Timbear said:

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Just listened to a Grimes interview. This guy is a state of Texas guy. I predict he'll rival Art in Offensive Production and winning. With Randa on D and Grimes on O, we could be in a great place. He's 52, I think, so if he does good and stays 3 years, we'll be fortunate.

---

I would wait and see what plans he has to install and how long they will take to learn. From what I read it's a simple playback but has a lot of jet sweeps and pre-snap formation changes. It is high production, but it has been called a power spread with heavy emphasis on big linemen and run plays. He most likely be very productive his first year here, but I expect bigger results in his second year.

---

I think that's a pretty fair way to look at it. The bar is so low that I'm sure we will see improvements next year....but I don't expect us to be melting scoreboards in the first year of a new offense with a new QB.

(So PSA....let's hold off on the fire Grimes threads after the first few games)

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You know they are coming...people want production out of the gate

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The problem is that Aranda has made the political miscalcuation of saying they were right. We were going to turn around post COVID and when some of this staff had some of their own players. However Aranda through his actions has said it was his staff's fault we were bad and that Baylor should be good right now. This means the new OC has to produce right away or Aranda goes into year 3 as his likely last year if there isnt production in that year. Again I think there was going to be a big turnaround in Aranda's year 2 post covid anyway without any changes. So the new OC is poised to look great and like an immediate results producer. But Aranda has set it up where that has to be how it looks in 21 for his own sake as HC here.

StatMan said:

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Timbear said:

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Just listened to a Grimes interview. This guy is a state of Texas guy. I predict he'll rival Art in Offensive Production and winning. With Randa on D and Grimes on O, we could be in a great place. He's 52, I think, so if he does good and stays 3 years, we'll be fortunate.

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I hope you are proven correct. An offense that rivals the ones under Art and Kendal Briles would be exciting to watch, both at McLane Stadium, as well as on cable TV.

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Please . . . No StatMan curse!

BYU isn't a peer of Baylor in football, so the Baylor job is a step up plus he has the ability to prove he is as good as he appears to be by transforming Baylor's offense.

BU82EX said:

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BearlyBeloved said:

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BU82EX said:

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So you don't view Baylor as an upgrade over BYU? Yes money matters, but we are a P5 program and BYU is not. We play in a reputable conference, BYU does not. Exposure at Baylor is higher than BYU's exposure (TV, Time Zone, national media, etc..). Add that to all the other things you mentioned and I would say it is an upgrade over his current situation.

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Maybe you missed these points in my post:

• Big 12 instead of independent
• Bigger recruiting base at Baylor than BYU

By contrast, BYU does have this advantage over Baylor: BYU fans show up big at road games everyplace in the country. BYU has a national following and church affiliation is a major part of that. There are other Baptist universities but BYU has a lock on the LDS fanbase which is distributed widely across the country.

FYI, I speak as a Baylor grad, Texas native and former Baptist, who is Mormon and now lives in Utah.

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So it sounds like you answered your own question as to why he left. Maybe another factor was his belief system (and I'm not talking football). Sounds like he is a Christian and not a Mormon, which could have been the deciding factor. Who knows?

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I think JG aspires to become a head coach, and has made some efforts. But he cannot be hired from within at BYU because of its policy that its head coach must be LDS. Thus, going to Baylor's Power 5 program expands his potential as well as increasing his visibility.

I hope he is a huge success in Waco. But if he is, we may have trouble keeping him during a future round of head coach vacancies.

But that's a possibility we should be happy to accept.

FYI, Utah's biggest paper (Deseret News) labels this an "upward move" for Grimes:

https://www.deseret.com/sports/2021/1/4/22213135/jeff-grimes-baylor-oc-byu-oc-kalani-sitake-zach-wilson-aaron-roderick-fesi-sitake-dave-aranda

Headline: Analysis: Jeff Grimes delivered on his promise to make BYU's offense great again, earned upward move to Baylor

Quarterback Zach Wilson, receiver Dax Milne and left tackle Brady Christensen aren't the only builders of BYU's outstanding offense in 2020 who are moving on.

The primary architect of the offense's three-year turnaround from one of the worst in the Football Bowl Subdivision to one of the best, offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes, will become the new OC at Baylor of the Big 12.

It is a good move for the 52-year-old Grimes, who gets back to his home state of Texas he was born in Garland and played for UTEP from 1987-90 and is reunited with Bears head coach Dave Aranda, who also has Utah ties. Aranda was a Southern Utah (2008) and Utah State (2012) defensive coordinator before stops at Wisconsin and LSU.

Grimes and Aranda worked together at LSU in 2016 and 2017, where Aranda was the highest-paid defensive coordinator and Grimes the highest-paid offensive line coach in the country. It was a surprise in some circles that BYU coach Kalani Sitake was able to come up with the cash to get Grimes to Provo for a second time.

So losing Grimes to Baylor should come as no shocker for the Cougars, especially after BYU finished No. 3 in scoring offense with a 43.5 point per game average and Grimes was a finalist for the Broyles Award.

With Grimes calling the bulk of the plays to utilize the talents of Wilson, Milne, receivers Gunner Romney and Neil Pau'u, freshman tight end Isaac Rex and running backs Lopini Katoa and Tyler Allgeier, not to mention a deep and experienced offensive line, he helped construct, the Cougars rose to No. 7 in the land in total offense, averaging 522.2 yards per game.

In at least eight of 11-1 BYU's games, Wilson and company watched the fourth quarter from the sidelines as Sitake called off the dogs. Grimes' offense was that good.

Grimes clearly wants to be a head coach some day, and an OC job at a Power Five school is obviously a better launching point for that than one at BYU.

As his ascension to a likely first-round pick in April's NFL draft unfolded this past season, Wilson often credited Grimes and quarterbacks coach/passing game coordinator Aaron Roderick for his success.

"When I met you, I was just a kid with a football and a dream," Wilson wrote on Twitter in a message to 'Coach Grimey.' "Your direction and leadership helped me grow and mature into the man and player that I am today."

Speaking of Roderick, he's seemingly the no-brainer choice to succeed Grimes at BYU providing he doesn't follow him to Waco. Also, Roderick could be looked at by his longtime friend and new Texas coach Steve Sarkisian to join that staff in Austin.

Grimes was largely responsible for bringing offensive line coach Eric Mateos to BYU, after Ryan Pugh left to become OC at Troy, so Mateos to Baylor in a similar role is obviously possible.

For the Cougars, it won't be the first time they've watched Grimes move on for a higher-paying job in the Big 12. He developed BYU's offensive line from 2004-06 under Bronco Mendenhall before leaving for Colorado then a Big 12 member in 2007.

Grimes' work in Provo this time around was even more impressive. Hired to replace a BYU legend, Heisman Trophy winner Ty Detmer, who was not nearly as successful as an OC as he was as a quarterback for the Cougars, Grimes inherited an offense that ranked No. 123 in the country after the 2017 season.

His first major move was to convince Sitake that the returning quarterbacks, mostly pocket passers with limited mobility, didn't fit the type of offense he had in mind. So they set about luring Wilson away from Boise State. Three years later, Wilson has declared for the NFL draft and the Cougars are coming off one of the best seasons in school history.

In a 33-minute session with reporters during an introductory news conference on Dec. 16, 2017, at the Cougar Room in LaVell Edwards Stadium, Grimes promised a "great offense" built around "versatile, hard-working players" and "creative play-calling" that would keep defenses guessing.

He delivered.

He made good on his promises so well that Sitake couldn't keep him in Provo for more than three years.

For BYU fans, the harsh reality is that the program in its current state and status as a college football independent is a stepping stone for lower-tier Power Five programs such as Baylor and Arizona, the school that Cougars running backs coach AJ Steward left for last year for the same position.

At Baylor, Grimes faces a similar rebuilding job as he did at BYU as he replaces Larry Fedora, who was fired after just one season. The Bears went 2-7 in 2020 and ranked 118th in total offense (310.2 yards per game) and 100th in scoring offense (23.3 points per game).

On the way to returning BYU's offense to its glorious past, Grimes helped develop some top-notch offensive linemen, most notably junior left tackle Christensen, a three-year starter who declared for the NFL draft last week.

Christensen could be the first BYU offensive lineman drafted since 2005.

Don't you think maybe money had something to do with it?

We play BYU this season.

And next year too--on their field.

historian said:

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Don't you think maybe money had something to do with it?

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Probably not--since my original post on this thread only mentioned six times that money was a factor.

If I'd really meant it, I surely would have repeated it ten times instead of only six.

Aberzombie1892 said:

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BYU isn't a peer of Baylor in football, so the Baylor job is a step up plus he has the ability to prove he is as good as he appears to be by transforming Baylor's offense.

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That depends on how you define "peer."

Since we are 1-1 all-time against BYU in football, we need to beat them this fall.

He's got a chance to coach in the playoffs and possibly win a Natty here. They are never gonna let BYU or the Group of 5 in the playoffs. He's a wise man.