JONESBORO, Ark. (3/7/23) – Arkansas State head football coach Butch Jones announced Tuesday that Nick Grimes has been named the Red Wolves’ tight ends coach.
 
Grimes comes to A-State after most recently spending the 2022 season coaching the tight ends position at UAB, but his path to Jonesboro also included a five-year stop at Campbell and three-year stint at Cincinnati.  Grimes brings 12 years of coaching experience with him to Jonesboro, including the last eight at the FBS and FCS levels.
 
“Nick brings a wealth of experience with him as both a coach and former student-athlete,” said Jones.  “The son of coach J.B. Grimes, Nick has been around football his entire life and has a strong overall knowledge of the game, specifically on the offensive side of the ball after previously working as an offensive coordinator in addition to his strong background coaching the tight ends position.  We’re excited to welcome him and his wife Cortney, daughter Tatum and son Gus to our Red Wolves family.”
 
Grimes helped lead UAB to a 7-6 record and 24-20 victory over Miami (OH) in the Bahamas Bowl last year.  The Blazers ended the season ranked eighth in the nation in rushing offense (235.6 ypg), 26th in third-down conversion (.452) and 32nd in total offense (438.2 ypg) while averaging 30.1 points per game.
 
Under Grimes direction, four different UAB tight ends combined for 28 receptions for 282 yards and three touchdowns.  Following the 2022 season, Grimes briefly served as an offensive analyst on the SMU football staff before joining A-State.
 
“I am blessed and excited to be joining the Arkansas State family,” said Grimes.  “Coach Jones has put together a great staff.  They have created a phenomenal culture on and off the field.  I could feel the energy and enthusiasm when walking into the team room for the first time and look forward to working with these players and competing this fall.  Wolves up!”
 
Grimes spent the 2017 through 2021 seasons at Campbell, including the last three years as the Fighting Camels’ offensive coordinator.  He also coached tight ends during his entire tenure at Campbell and was the special teams coordinator in 2017 and 2018.
 
His final season in Buies Creek, NC, saw Campbell rank 30th in the nation in passing efficiency and 51st in total offense.  Three offensive players were tabbed First Team All-Big South Conference, including tight end Julian Hill, wide receiver Caleb Snead and offensive lineman Tyler McClellan.
 
With a four-game, all-FBS schedule in 2020, the Campbell offense ranked No. 4 among FCS programs in total offense, No. 3 in rushing offense, No. 5 in passing offense and No. 1 in third down conversions at season’s end.
 
Quarterback Hajj-Malik Williams, the Preseason Big South Offensive Player of the Year, was named Stats Perform FCS Player of the Week following the Camels’ season opener at Georgia Southern after posting 310 yards total offense (237 pass, 73 rush) with three touchdowns.  Additionally, two Camels on the offensive side of the ball were named Second Team All-Big South despite not playing a league schedule in 2020, including Hill and McLellan.
 
During his first season as offensive coordinator, Grimes led one of the most balanced attacks in the Big South.  The Camels posted at least 200 rushing yards and 200 passing yards in the same game six different times in 2019.  Campbell rushed for a season-high 269 yards at North Alabama, while passing for a season-best 266 yards on its way to 515 yards total offense in a win at Mercer.  The Camels also rushed for 100 or more yards six times on the season.
 
Four offensive players earned Big South postseason honors for Campbell, including Offensive Freshman of the Year Malik Williams.  Offensive linemen Jacob Cuddington and McLellan were tabbed first and second team all-conference, respectively, while tight end Michael Wooten garnered Big South All-Academic accolades.
 
Williams, also named First Team Freshman All-America (HERO Sports), was a four-time Big South Freshman of the Week in 2019, earning honorable mention FCS Freshman of the Week nods five times.  A STATS Jerry Rice Award finalist, the quarterback became the second Camel and first CU freshman to pass for more than 2,000 yards in a single season.
 
In 2018 as Campbell’s tight ends coach, the Camels ranked ninth nationally in sacks allowed, clearing the way for six individual 100-yard rushing games.  Campbell own the Big South’s second-ranked passing offense, standing No. 2 in pass completions, passing yards and pass touchdowns, as well as third-ranked totals in scoring offense, touchdowns, total offense, rushing yards and rushing touchdowns.  Wooten was named to the Big South’s All-Academic team, as well as second team all-conference by Phil Steele.
 
In Grimes’ first season on the Campbell staff in 2017, the Camels’ offense became the PFL’s top offensive unit, averaging 436.5 yards per game – a school record.  CU was also one of two squads in the PFL to average more than 33 points per game, adding the league’s second highest rushing yards per game total with a 228.7 average.
 
Campbell also set school records for passing touchdowns (21) and passing yards per game (207.8), while hitting the 50 touchdown mark for the second time in the program’s 10 seasons.
 
Grimes moved to Campbell after three seasons at Cincinnati under head coach Tommy Tuberville, who was an assistant coach at A-State in 1983 and 1984.  He served as the Bearcats’ tight ends and fullbacks coach in 2015 and 2016.  In 2014, Grimes’ first season at Cincinnati, he was a graduate assistant for tight ends and special teams.
 
During his time at Cincinnati, the Bearcats participated in the 2015 Hawaii Bowl, as well as the 2014 Military Bowl after claiming a share of the American Athletic Conference title.
 
Grimes has a wealth of experience at the prep level in Texas, coaching three seasons at Navasota High School from 2010-12 and at Howe High School in 2013, where he was the offensive coordinator and strength and conditioning coordinator.
 
After lettering one season as a defensive lineman at Tulsa, Grimes transferred to Sam Houston State, where he lettered three seasons, earning honorable mention All-Southland Conference accolades and also taking a SHSU offensive lineman of the year nod.  He was a team captain as well.
 
Grimes graduated from Sam Houston State University in 2009 with a degree in kinesiology and a minor in history.
 
Originally from College Station, Texas, Grimes finished his high school career at J.H. Rose High School in Greenville, NC, where he was an all-district performer, state championship defensive player of the game and a Shrine Bowl participant.
 
He and his wife, Cortney, have two children – daughter Tatum and son Gus.