The Grinch is coming to Oklahoma.

Alex Grinch, that is. The former Ohio State co-defensive coordinator was officially named as OU’s defensive coordinator Friday evening by head coach Lincoln Riley.

Before his one season in Columbus, Grinch had spent the previous three seasons as the defensive coordinator for Washington State. The common link there is obviously Cougars head coach Mike Leach, who knows both Riley and Grinch extremely well.

The goal for Riley was to find the defensive version of himself from four years ago. Back then, it was former OU head coach Bob Stoops taking a chance that Riley was the answer to taking OU’s offense back to the top.

Now Riley is asking Grinch, 38, to do the same with the Sooners defense, a group that has struggled mightily in the last few seasons.

“Alex has an outstanding track record as a defensive coach and a defensive coordinator," said Riley in a press release. “He's been one of the most sought-after guys in the country here the last couple of years, especially for the work that he did at Washington State. Taking that defense where he did in a short amount of time is one of the best coaching jobs in the country over the last several years.

“I have a lot of mutual contacts and people I trust in the business who have worked with Alex, and they all speak highly of his ability to not only be one of the best schematically, but also a guy who will help build the culture that we want and expect here at Oklahoma on the defensive side.”

Riley dismissed former defensive coordinator Mike Stoops halfway through the 2018 regular season, and Ruffin McNeill served as interim defensive coordinator during the final eight games.

No other coaching moves were reported in the release although there is good reason to believe this won’t be the only defensive change heading into the 2019 year for the Sooners.

An Ohio native, Grinch is no doubt excited about trying to fix the OU defense and slow down the high-powered Big 12 offenses.

“This is a unique opportunity at one of the premier institutions under elite leadership," said Grinch in the release. “Oklahoma is in the top one percent. There's no faking it in this business. You're either it or you're not. Oklahoma is one of those programs.”

Grinch began his coaching career in 2002 as a grad assistant at Missouri. Other stops include New Hampshire, Wyoming and a full-time spot with Missouri before landing in Pullman for the 2015 season.

Knowing Riley and knowing the direction of his program, clearly recruiting will be a priority, and Riley believes Grinch will be a great asset in that department as well.

“He's a very diligent and very, very involved recruiter,” Riley said. “His specialty has been the secondary, but he'll certainly be involved in all aspects of our defensive recruiting. He's a personable guy and has an outstanding track record in that area. It's something he's very invested in and he fits with the standard that we've created here.

“Recruiting is going to be at the forefront of everything we do. Alex certainly agrees with that and fits in perfectly.”

One reason Grinch feels like a natural fit is because of his time with the Cougars. With OU’s offensive tempo being among the best in the country, you have to know your defense is going to be on the field for a lot more snaps than some others.

What he’s learned working with Leach, he now takes with him working under Riley and hoping for the same success with his “speed defense.”

“I'm definitely in the 'air raid' tree, just on the defensive side of the ball. I'm not sure there's a better fit for an offense and a defense. I believe this is what Coach Riley is looking for. I also believe what we do works.

“I have great respect for the Big 12. The offenses are explosive. To a degree, that same approach has become America's offense. Offenses now feature run-pass options combined with tempo. That's the challenge we face, and we look forward to meeting it.”