Alabama Football: Names to watch at Offensive Coordinator after Ryan Grubb's departure
In surprising news, the Alabama Football team has lost its offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb with Grubb heading back to Washington to become the offensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks. The loss of Grubb will hurt the Alabama Football program as Kalen DeBoer will now have to find a new offensive signal caller. It's unclear if this will result in Kalen DeBoer still using his offense with a new play caller or if the new offensive coordinator will implement his own offense. This is further muddied by the fact that Kalen DeBoer planned on using this week to install the new offense:
Alabama HC Kalen DeBoer said today that he plans on installing new offensive and defensive systems next week, per @TideIllustrated.
— Sidelines - Bama (@SSN_Alabama) February 1, 2024
He noted the hope is that his former Huskies on campus can help players install the system, specifically referencing Jalen Milroe and Austin Mack.
With Grubb gone the offensive coordinator job will be one of the most attractive job openings in the country with plenty of candidates.
JaMarcus Shephard- Receivers coach - Alabama
If DeBoer chooses to fill the role internally the most likely candidate for the job would become Jamarcus Shephard. Shephard served as Kalen DeBoer's wide receivers coach and as the passing game coordinator for the Washington Huskies. Shephard lacks experience as a play-caller, with the only time he may have called plays coming in 2018-2021 at Purdue where he served as the co-offensive coordinator and passing game coordinator.
Shephard has been long viewed as one of the top receivers coaches in the country and will be a vital part of Kalen DeBoer's staff. Promoting Shephard would make it harder for an opposing school to poach Shephard unless they hired him as a head coach. Shephard becoming the offensive coordinator would likely mean the program would use the Grubb/DeBoer offensive scheme we've seen become incredibly successful with Shephard likely just choosing which play is called.
Kurtiss Riggs - Former Sioux Falls QB/WR Coach
We've seen Kalen DeBoer fill out his staff with coaches he's worked with in the past and Riggs would fit the mold having served roles on DeBoer's Sioux Falls coaching staff. Riggs would be an unorthodox hire having served his past twenty seasons as the Head Coach of the Sioux Falls Storm, a team in multiple indoor football leagues. Riggs, however, was one of the better coaches in the league's history, winning the United Bowl 11 times and becoming an IFL Hall of Famer.
Riggs and DeBoer have remained close despite the two taking different paths since their time together at Sioux Falls. While Riggs likely won't be the top name that comes to mind when considering potential candidates, his history with Kalen DeBoer and his history calling plays will make him one of the top candidates.
Nick Sheridan - Tight End coach - Alabama
If Kalen DeBoer looks to elevate from within, another likely candidate will be tight end coach Nick Sheridan. Sheridan served as the offensive coordinator for Indiana in 2020 after Kalen DeBoer left the program. The Indiana offense under Sheridan averaged 28.88 points per game despite losing Michael Penix Jr for the final three games of the season.
Similar to JaMarcus Shephard, the hiring of Sheridan would likely mean we see a similar scheme to what Kalen DeBoer and Ryan Grubb ran while at Washington.