Tiffini Grimes
BA 2005, Political Science
Deputy Director of Athletics/Senior Woman Administrator
Purdue University
Deputy Director of Athletics/Senior Woman Administrator
Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN
Tiffini Grimes joined Purdue Athletics in the role of Deputy Athletics Director and Senior Woman Administrator in August 2022. The move returned Grimes her alma mater following a nearly six-year stint at the University of Alabama (2016-22), most recently serving as Senior Deputy Director of Athletics/Senior Woman Administrator and Chief Diversity Officer.
For the Boilermakers, Grimes provides leadership and oversight for several areas of the department, including: academic services, business, compliance, human resources, student-athlete development, sports medicine and sports performance. She also supports Purdue's football, women's basketball and softball teams as a program administrator.
Grimes' focus for the Boilermakers will involve shaping Purdue's departmental strategy and advise staff on the ever-changing landscape of college athletics. She serves on the department's Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) working group to utilize her expertise in the area, including her previous experience with establishing Alabama's Elite Athlete Program, which helped notable student-athletes from the Crimson Tide's 18-time national champion football program transition into the realm of professional sports and encompassed "The Advantage", Alabama's NIL initiative. As a member of Alabama's executive leadership team, Grimes supported the Crimson Tide's football program as an administrator, as well as provided strategic direction for the department and oversight of several internal areas.
As part of her duties as Senior Woman Administrator, Grimes represents Purdue University within the Big Ten Conference as a member of the governance structure and through engagement in leadership at the national level through her roles as a member of the NCAA Division I Rowing Committee and a member of the Women Leaders in College Sports Nominating Committee.
Grimes was recently named to the Sports Business Journal's Forty Under 40 Class of 2022, an annual distinction bestowed upon top team executives, administrators and officials within the sports industry. Grimes is one of four honored to the list representing for either an NCAA institution or conference office. Additionally, Grimes was recognized to The Athletic's College Sports 40 Under 40, the publication's inaugural collection of the industry's fastest risers. The online sports reporting hub solicited nominations across Division I and all major sports to build out its class.
Grimes, who is a native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, began at Alabama in October 2016 as assistant athletics director for football and men's basketball compliance before ascending after just six months into the role of associate athletics director. She also served as men's basketball sport administrator. She was promoted again by Alabama Director of Athletics Greg Byrne in December 2019 to the role of deputy director of athletics. Additionally, she carried the designation of chief diversity officer for the Crimson Tide since 2017. Prior to her time in Tuscaloosa, Grimes worked in Indianapolis for two years at National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) headquarters as an assistant director within the Enforcement Football Development Group. She was primarily responsible for identifying trends and cultivating information regarding issues detrimental to the game of football. Prior to joining the NCAA, Grimes was employed in athletics compliance at both Penn State and Georgia Tech, where she worked specifically with football in the areas of recruiting, amateurism, agents and waivers of NCAA legislation. In addition to her football specific responsibilities, she worked with both institution's basketball programs and Olympic sports in a compliance, policy and life skills programming capacity.
A former intern for the John Purdue Club during her undergraduate career at Purdue University, Grimes earned a Bachelor's degree in Political Science. Grimes is also a graduate of Valparaiso University, earning both a Master's degree in Sports Administration and a Juris Doctorate.