By Tim Stried
May 27, 2003

CONTACT INFORMATION FOR COACH GRANDEY
OFFICE PHONE: 419-358-3292
EMAIL: grandeyj@bluffton.edu

The Bluffton College department of athletics has announced that James Grandey has been named head baseball coach and assistant football coach. Grandey comes to Bluffton from Muskingum College in New Concord, Ohio, where he has served as an assistant football and baseball coach for the past four seasons.

Grandey earned a bachelors and masters degree from Muskingum in 1999 and 2002, respectively, and was a standout student-athlete while playing for the Muskies. As a senior he earned first team All-Ohio Athletic Conference honors in both football and baseball and was named first team All-Mideast Region in baseball, as well. Grandey's academic career was just as impressive, as he earned Academic All-OAC honors as a sophomore, junior and senior and was named first team GTE Academic All-American in baseball as a senior.

Grandey will join the coaching staff of new Bluffton head football coach Greg Brooks in the fall and will take over the baseball program in the spring. Brooks was named head football coach on March 11 following the retirement announcement of Carlin Carpenter, who coached Bluffton to 103 wins from 1979-2002. Brooks was an assistant football coach under Carpenter for 22 of those seasons and also won a school-record 276 games as the head baseball coach from 1981-2002. Pitching coach Vince Wakefield served as head coach of the Bluffton baseball squad this spring following Brooks' appointment to director of football operations in January.