Eric Dooley returns to the SWAC with Grambling State University

Eric Dooley will make his return to SWAC football as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach under Mickey Joseph at Grambling State University. Joseph, whom Grambling State hired after getting rid of Hue Jackson, lands the first big fish of his head coaching tenure with the Tigers.

Southern University hired Dooley as their head coach in 2021, but they fired him towards the tail end of the 2023 season. The Jaguars had a successful season in Dooley’s first year, going 7-5. In 2023, Southern stepped back a little bit, going 5-5 before the University fired Dooley.

They had lost two games in a row, including a 44-21 thrashing at the hands of Alcorn State. Following a 27-21 loss to Prairie View A&M, Southern let Dooley go and placed Terrence Graves in the interim for their final game against Grambling State in the Bayou Classic.

Dooley’s upcoming tenure at Grambling State is more of a homecoming than a new experience. He’s had multiple stints with the Tigers in his football career. First, Dooley was a wide receiver at Grambling under the legendary head coach Eddie Robinson.

Between 1985 and 1988, Dooley helped the Tigers secure two SWAC Championships. After playing in professional leagues for a while, he coached at Southern and Arkansas-Pine Bluff before returning to his alma mater in 2014.

From 2014 to 2017, Dooley served as Grambling State’s offensive coordinator. At different periods, he also took the roles of quarterbacks coach and wide receivers coach. During his tenure, Grambling State won three SWAC West Division titles, two SWAC championships, and a Celebration Bowl victory in 2016.