What's new
AllBuffs | Unofficial fan site for the University of Colorado at Boulder Athletics programs

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • Prime Time. Prime Time. Its a new era for Colorado football. Consider signing up for a club membership! For $20/year, you can get access to all the special features at Allbuffs, including club member only forums, dark mode, avatars and best of all no ads ! But seriously, please sign up so that we can pay the bills. No one earns money here, and we can use your $20 to keep this hellhole running. You can sign up for a club membership by navigating to your account in the upper right and clicking on "Account Upgrades". Make it happen!

Can't believe this has not been talked about

Unleash Hell

Well-Known Member
Posted in the newsroom, but didn't get any replies.

RIP Coach!:sad1:

From BDC...

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Former Colorado football coach Everett "Sonny" Grandelius, who led the Buffs to the 1961 Big Eight championship and the Orange Bowl, died Friday. He was 79.



Grandelius, who was also Michigan State's first 1,000-yard rusher and an All-American fullback in 1950, died in Beverly Hills, Mich. The school didn't provide details on the cause of death.

After his college career, Grandelius played one season in the NFL. He then spent five years as an assistant coach at Michigan State before taking the head coaching job at CU.

He led CU to a 20-11 record in his three seasons in Boulder, culminating with a 9-2 record (7-0 in the Big Eight) in 1961.

Grandelius, however, he was forced out after the 1961 in the wake of a recruiting scandal.

He later served as a coach with the Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions and was the general manager of the Detroit Wheels of the World Football League.

Grandelius, a Muskegon Heights native, was inducted into Michigan State's Hall of Fame in 1995 and the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.
 
Very much a forgotten coach, I hadn't ever even heard of him until I read about his passing. I guess that's what happens when you're sandwiched between Dal Ward and Eddie Crowder... does anyone here know anything beyond wins and losses regarding this guy?
 
There was a brief mention of a recruiting violation in the write-up. What's the 411?
 
Very much a forgotten coach, I hadn't ever even heard of him until I read about his passing. I guess that's what happens when you're sandwiched between Dal Ward and Eddie Crowder... does anyone here know anything beyond wins and losses regarding this guy?

He was fired because he was caught using a slush fund to pay players.
 
He was fired because he was caught using a slush fund to pay players.

Wow, I heard of him and the 61' Big 8 CHamp team, but I didnt know about his recruiting scandal. That sucks, it seemed like he was a good coach. Another story of "what coud've been." :sad1: RIP
 
Wow, I heard of him and the 61' Big 8 CHamp team, but I didnt know about his recruiting scandal. That sucks, it seemed like he was a good coach. Another story of "what coud've been." :sad1: RIP

It was more than a scandal. It got us on some very serious NCAA sanctions.
 
Wow, I heard of him and the 61' Big 8 CHamp team, but I didnt know about his recruiting scandal. That sucks, it seemed like he was a good coach. Another story of "what coud've been." :sad1: RIP

Sonny Grandelius personally controlled the slush fund used to pay players, which is how he got the guys that won the 61 championship. About 20 players were suspended for a year, he was fired, the president resigned in disgrace, and the team fell apart. Of course, he probably wasn't any dirtier than the coaches he was competing against, but he wasn't an innocent bystander.
 
Sonny Grandelius personally controlled the slush fund used to pay players, which is how he got the guys that won the 61 championship. About 20 players were suspended for a year, he was fired, the president resigned in disgrace, and the team fell apart. Of course, he probably wasn't any dirtier than the coaches he was competing against, but he wasn't an innocent bystander.

And now he's passed away. Karma.
 
Sonny Grandelius was an outstanding player and football coach. He coached Colorado to the 1961 Big 8 Championship and had a final ranking of #7 in the nation. He got caught up in some trouble that has already been explained in other posts. I would say there is a pretty good chance he wasn't the only one doing what got him dismissed.

Many people don't know this but, Grandelius was the first Colorado coach to put the Buffs in black jerseys. Some say it was because coaches had trouble differentiating the Buffs in gold jerseys from visitors in white jerseys when studying black and white film. I don't know the real reason, but it sure was a good move. Sonny Grandelius should always be remembered for being the first coach to use black in Colorado uniforms. As far as I know black is still an "unofficial" color and silver and gold remain as the official school colors.
The Buffs returned to gold jerseys for one year in 1962. Eddie Crowder brought back the black jerseys in 1963. I was fortunate to receive one under Coach Crowder some years later. Many of you are aware that Coach McCartney switched from the horrible unmentionable color to black again in the 1980s. I hope the uniform colors are not messed with again. (Such as the ridiculous all white road uniforms.)

Sonny Grandelius, may he R.I.P.
 
Back
Top