Credit to Tyler Pounds | Associate Director, Athletics Communications – 12thman.com
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko announced the hire of Holmon Wiggins as the co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach. Wiggins comes to Aggieland after five seasons at Alabama as the wide receivers coach, including the previous three seasons as the assistant head coach of offense.
During his time in Tuscaloosa, Wiggins produced a Heisman Trophy and Biletnikoff Award winner in DeVonta Smith in 2020. He also developed five first round NFL Draft picks, including Jaylen Waddle (No. 6 overall), DeVonta Smith (No. 10), Henry Ruggs III (No. 12), Jameson Williams (No. 12) and Jerry Jeudy (No. 15).
In 2023, Wiggins coached Jermaine Burton to a career-best season as the senior racked up 798 yards receiving on 39 catches for eight touchdowns, while ranking sixth in the nation and leading the SEC averaging 20.5 yards per reception. Wiggins tutored Jameson Williams and John Metchie III to 1,000-plus yard receiving seasons in 2021, marking the second time in Alabama history a wide receiver duo eclipsed 1,000 yards in the same season. Williams finished the campaign a Biletnikoff finalist and first team All-American after catching 79 passes for 1,572 yards and 15 touchdowns. Metchie III led the team with 96 receptions for 1,142 yards and eight touchdowns.
Wiggins mentored Smith in 2020 to arguably the best season by a wide receiver in college football history on his way to winning the Heisman, as well as the Biletnikoff Award, Maxwell Award, Walter Camp Player of the Year and the Paul Hornung Award. He caught 117 passes for 1,856 yards and 23 touchdowns, setting SEC marks for yards and receiving touchdowns, while finishing his career with the SEC records for receptions (235), yards (3,965) and touchdowns (46).
He made an immediate impact in his first season in Tuscaloosa in 2019 producing two 1,000-plus yard receivers in the same season for the first time in Alabama history. Smith turned in an impressive season with 68 receptions for a team-best 1,256 yards and 14 touchdowns, while Jerry Jeudy led the team in receptions with 77 while recording 1,163 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns.
Prior to his time in Alabama, Wiggins spent three years coaching wide receivers at Virginia Tech (2015-18), following four seasons at Memphis (2012-15) as the wide receivers coach and one season at Tulsa in 2011 coaching running backs. He also served a stint at Illinois State as the running backs coach from 2006-10.
Wiggins began his coaching career at his alma mater New Mexico, after an outstanding playing career with the Lobos. He was a three-year starter at running back, finishing his career with 1,833 rushing years while setting the Lobos’ single-season record for punt returns (46) and punt return yards (392). He is a 2003 graduate of the University of New Mexico.
Wiggins and his wife Dominique have four daughters, Justyce, Karyn, Brooklyn and Journye, and two sons, Kingston and Legend.
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Texas A&M head football coach Mike Elko announced he will retain former Texas A&M and NFL football defensive lineman Tony Jerod-Eddie as defensive line coach. Jerod-Eddie was recently promoted from defensive analyst to on the field assistant football coach at Texas A&M.
Jerod-Eddie first came to Aggieland from DeSoto High School in the fall of 2008. He was an honorable mention All-State defensive lineman from both The Associated Press and the Texas Sports Writer’s Association.
As a true freshman, he started seven games while playing in all 12 contests. In addition to his 20 tackles, which included 3.0 tackles for loss as well as his first quarterback sack against Miami, Jerod-Eddie blocked a kick against Texas Tech.
Jerod-Eddie saw action in all 13 games as a sophomore starting five games on the interior of the defensive line and helping the Aggies reach the Independence Bowl against Georgia. His top game came against Utah State when he recorded six stops including one for loss and picked up a half-sack. He also blocked an extra point against Oklahoma.
As a junior, he started and played in all 13 games while helping Texas A&M advance to the Cotton Bowl against Tennessee. Jerod-Eddie had 49 total tackles and blocked another kick, an extra point against Missouri. He notched a career-high eight tackles against Oklahoma in an upset win over the Sooners and earned honorable mention All-Big 12 honors as he helped the Aggies to a share a Big 12 South Conference title.
His senior season of 2011 the Aggies won the Texas Bowl with Jerod-Eddie earning second-team All-Conference honors as selected by the league’s coaches. He ended the season with 48 tackles to lead all Aggie defensive linemen and led the way with four quarterback sacks. A four-year Aggie letterman, he ended his career playing in 51 games and making 38 starts.
Jerod-Eddie signed a free agent contract with the San Francisco 49ers after the 2012 NFL draft and played for the club from 2012-2016, including Super Bowl XLVII against the Baltimore Ravens.
After a bout with lupus, Jerod-Eddie retired from the NFL but spent time working with the Denver Broncos organization. He returned to Texas A&M in 2020 to work with the Aggie defensive line where he was mentored by coaches Terry Price and Elijah Robinson.
He has worked with Aggie defensive linemen such as Bobby Brown III (Los Angeles Rams), DeMarvin Leal (Pittsburgh Steelers) and Micheal Clemons (New York Jets).
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko announced the addition of Wesley McGriff to serve as the defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator. McGriff comes to Aggieland after coaching the defensive backs at Auburn in 2023.
The 2023 campaign marked McGriff’s third stint at Auburn, where he previously served as an assistant coach in 2019-20 and the 2016 seasons. In 2023, Auburn’s defense ranked 16th in the country and second-best in the SEC in third down conversion percentage (.317). The passing defense was third-best in the league allowing 202.0 yards per game, while ranking fourth in interceptions with 12. During his first stint on the Plains, McGriff was part of a coaching staff that led the Tigers to a Sugar Bowl berth in 2016 and ranked second in the SEC in scoring defense (15.6 ppg) and third-down conversion defense (.340), as well as third in the conference in rushing defense (124.8 ypg).
McGriff coached at Louisville during the 2022 season where he mentored one of the stingiest secondaries in the nation. The Cardinals ranked No. 10 in the nation in interceptions (15), which was second-best in the ACC. Louisville allowed the fourth-fewest passing yards per game (206.5) in the league, and junior defensive back Kei’Trel Clark went on to earn All-ACC honors in 2022.
He served two stints at Ole Miss, including the 2017-18 seasons as the defensive coordinator, while adding associate head coach duties in 2018, and the 2012 campaign as co-defensive coordinator and cornerbacks coach. McGriff reached the professional ranks working with the defensive backs for the New Orleans Saints from 2013-15, including his first season when the Saints ranked second in allowing 194.1 passing yards per game.
Prior to his time in Oxford and the NFL, he spent the 2011 season as defensive backs coach and recruiting coordinator at Vanderbilt where he helped the Commodores to their fifth all-time bowl appearance.
McGriff’s time in Nashville was preceded by four seasons at Miami, where he mentored some of the ACC’s top defensive backs. Before joining the Miami staff, McGriff served four years at Baylor as recruiting coordinator and defensive backs coach, which was followed by his first SEC coaching position at Kentucky where he coached running backs in 2001 and cornerbacks the following season.
A native of Tifton, Georgia, McGriff started at linebacker for Savannah State from 1987-89 and was named the conference’s 1989 Male Academic Athlete of the Year. He received his bachelor’s degree while graduating cum laude in 1990 and earned a master’s in public administration from Georgia Southern in 1993. McGriff was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army in 1990 and was a member of the Army Reserves until 2001.