Weber Got Good Word On Graybeal

Weber State athletic director John Johnson knew he was on to something when he went looking for a new football coach and ended up with Eastern Washington assistant Jerry Graybeal.

“I talked to a lot of people and his name kept coming up,” said John Johnson, who was A.D. at EWU before coming to Weber State last year. “His background in the Big Sky and philosophy for developing student-athletes were big factors.”

Graybeal was introduced as Weber State’s new head football coach on Wednesday.

Graybeal, 42, becomes the seventh head coach at Weber since the school attained four-year status in 1962. As defensive coordinator he helped the Eagles (10-1) to a Big Sky Conference title this year.

Jerome Souers, defensive coordinator at Montana, was among those who interviewed for the job. Souers, who has coached defense for the Grizzlies for the past dozen seasons, said Tuesday that he was withdrawing his name from consideration.

Graybeal, on the EWU coaching staff for 16 seasons, replaces Dave Arslanian, who was named head football coach at Utah State University on Dec. 6.

“This is going to be a very exciting opportunity for me,” Graybeal said at a news conference. “I’m thankful to Coach Arslanian for the foundation he has established here.”

Under his tutelage, the Eagles led the Big Sky in total defense this past season, yielding just 313.8 yards per game. They ranked fourth in Division 1-AA in rushing defense and also led the league in pass defense.

EWU was second in the league to Montana in scoring defense, allowing just 17.1 points per game.

Graybeal graduated from Walla Walla High School in 1975 and attended Walla Walla Community College on a football scholarship for two seasons. He earned All-Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges honors in 1976 as a sophomore, then transferred to Idaho State University for two seasons.

Upon completing his eligibility at Idaho State, Graybeal served as the defensive backs coach at Walla Walla CC for three seasons. While at Walla Walla, he completed his bachelor’s degree in Education from Eastern Washington in 1981. In 1982, he left Walla Walla to join the EWU staff.