The offensive coordinator talked about his unexpected decision to join the NFL.
Ryan Grubb, the former offensive coordinator for Washington, abruptly left his position to take an offensive coordinator position with the Seattle Seahawks last week, joining Kalen DeBoer’s first Crimson Tide staff. During a program event, Grubb—who Alabama never formally introduced as its offensive coordinator—assured the audience that he would be on staff for the 2024 season. However, a few days later, Grubb chose to stay in Seattle and accept the NFL job.
For one of the most brilliant offensive minds in the country, who oversaw the most successful passing attack in college football the previous two seasons, it was a fast-paced process. In his first press conference with the Seahawks on Thursday, Grubb discussed his decision to enter the professional ranks, which has left two fan groups completely taken aback.
Grubb told the Seattle reporters, “You just know that the timing is never going to be perfect.” The ideal situation would be for those timelines to slightly better match up. To be honest, that was the hardest part.
Here is what Grubb said about Washington, Alabama and the state of college football coaching:
“It’s been pretty eventful, for sure. It’s been a really exciting month. It’s been a tough month. But at the end of the day, it’s obviously a privilege and an honor to be here… I met Mike about a year ago, started building a relationship not with necessarily any end in mind, but just how the process goes in the football world. I got to know him throughout a couple different conversations and just kind of built that relationship over time and kind of knew that potentially there would be an opportunity like this down the line. Didn’t necessarily think it would happen the very first year.”
“I thought about that process a lot of times, honestly. I think the situation we were in made it tougher. Just that he was getting it started at Alabama, and I wanted to be there for him, but I knew this was ultimately what I wanted to do if the right situation came up. The timing is so difficult to really describe, so I think that was the hardest part, was being in that position where the timing wasn’t going to be perfect.
“I believe that those who work in this field just understand that there will never be ideal timing. The ideal situation would be if those timelines could slightly improve. To be honest, that was the hardest part. We were certain that this day would arrive. I can’t wait to see Kalen. He’s excited for me to have this opportunity, and I believe he’s going to do an amazing job down at Alabama.
That was my location. Taking on the role of offensive coordinator down there was the main objective. This place wasn’t set. Making the best choices he could for the Seahawks, Mike was working through his process. Thus, nothing was fixed. I had to continue with the position I had accepted, which was offensive coordinator for Alabama. All I had to do was have faith in the procedure and know that everything will work out correctly.
“Austin is special in that, when I recruited him, I did it on the understanding that, after speaking with his parents, Brad and Lisa, he was aware that this may happen this year or next year, or at some other time. I informed him that there was a strong possibility I wouldn’t live to see his professional career come to an end. Therefore, I believe that having open discussions like that when hiring children might be helpful at times of transition.
“It hurts. It hurts a lot. That was one of the toughest losses that I’ve ever had to endure. And then to walk away from a special season like that, nobody wants to lose the last game of the year no matter what, but to lose like that, it was tough, man. And I said it before, but those kids left everything out there, and it was a challenging loss.
Indeed, it played a role. The ability to compete at the greatest level, in my opinion, was the more important component. However, when I consider it, if you merely talk about coaching as a job and your skill, I would argue that the more time and ability you have to dedicate to the task at hand, the more proficient you will be. The hardest aspect of college football, in my opinion, is when you simply consider coaching your team and your room. I brought this up to some guys yesterday.
“All you’re thinking about is the attention you can currently provide your team, only your squad. There aren’t as many outside influences on you that you need to manage and attend to. Just provides you more time and chances to hone your skills and supply your squad with greater resources. They really need to improve it, in my opinion. It must be improved. It’s an amazing location for youngsters to work on what they love, with too many wonderful individuals and an even better organization. They must do it correctly. They need to stay at it, and I have no doubt that they will.
