Longtime college football assistant coach Jeff Grimes could be returning to BYU for a third stint on the Cougars' offensive coaching staff.
A source close to the process said Grimes has interviewed for the yet-to-be-named position that opened when head coach Kalani Sitake decided to not retain three-year offensive line coach Darrell Funk and eight-year tight ends coach Steve Clark last week.
The source said the Cougars have been "zeroing in" on the the former Baylor offensive coordinator for more than a week, and Grimes has shown "a lot of interest" in returning to BYU . Grimes was dismissed from the Baylor staff by head coach Dave Aranda at the conclusion of the regular season.
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Grimes withdrew his name from the open UTEP head coaching job last week and canceled a scheduled interview in El Paso, Texas, home of the Miners and the place where Grimes played his college football.
The source said Grimes' hiring is not "totally official" yet because a few details need to be ironed out regarding his responsibilities and title.
Also, some additional vetting and/or interviews from BYU's administration, which is standard procedure at the school supported by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, may need to take place.
Funk and Clark were dismissed after the Cougars went 5-7 and missed a bowl game for the first time since 2017.
Grimes was BYU's offensive coordinator from 2018-20, replacing Ty Detmer, who was fired after BYU went 4-9 in 2017. Grimes and BYU OL coach Eric Mateos joined Aranda's staff at Baylor in 2021 . Mateos will become the new offensive line coach at Arkansas , it was announced on Sunday.
Grimes' arrival at BYU in 2018 was a homecoming, because he was BYU's offensive line coach from 2004-06 under then-head coach Bronco Mendenhall.
Before his second stint at BYU, Grimes was the run game coordinator and offensive line coach at LSU from 2014-17.
Grimes was Baylor's offensive coordinator the last three years, but was fired last week after the Bears went 3-9 in 2023, their second straight losing season.
He has been as assistant coach for nearly 30 years.
His fortunes plummeted quickly in Waco, after having been named a finalist for the Broyles Award (best assistant coach) in 2021 when the Bears went 12-2 and won the Sugar Bowl.
Baylor scored just 23.1 points per game this season, 95th in the nation. The Bears were 70th in total offense (377.7 yards per game) and 109th in rushing offense at 114.8 ypg.
Baylor finished the season on a five-game losing skid, just as BYU did.
Jeff Grimes speaks during the press conference introducing him as the new Offensive Coordinator for the BYU football program in Provo South on Saturday, Dec. 16, 2017. | Adam Fondren, Deseret News
