About Us - Management Overview


Frank F.Starr II - President & Engineer

Mr. Starr is the President & Engineer of Crimson. Mr. Starr has over 30 years of experience in operations, reservoir engineering, acquisitions and management. As President, Mr. Starr is responsible for overall management, business development and reservoir engineering. Prior to founding Crimson, Mr. Starr worked for Union Pacific Resources (Anadarko) for 17 years, covering Texas, California, the Mid-Continent and the Rockies.

Mr. Starr attended the University of Oklahoma for a B.S. Degree in Petroleum Engineering.

In 2013 Mr. Starr was recognized by Texas Monthly Magazine with the Top Producer Award, Best CEO of a Mid-Size Company. Additionally, Crimson Energy III had articles written in 2012 and 2013 by Oil & Gas Investor on the Brazos County Eagleford and Woodbine operations. In his spare time, Mr. Starr serves on the board for several non-profits in the DFW area including Kids Matter Intl. (KMI), and Heart of a Champion (HOC). Mr. Starr has been a guest speaker at the DUG Conference in 2012, AADE in 2012.

Since leaving UPR, as an independent operator, Messrs. Starr and Rivers acquired/created over 250 Bcfe in reserves generating total exit ROI’s in excess of 2.4x.



Jacob "Tripp" Rivers III - Executive Vice President of Geology & Geophysics

Mr. Rivers is the EVP of Geology & Geophysics of Crimson. Mr. Rivers has over 30 years of industry experience evaluating reservoir potential and geological structure. As EVP of Geology & Geophysics, Mr. Rivers is responsible for the management of geology and oil and gas prospect generation for Crimson. Prior to joining Crimson, Mr. Rivers held various industry roles including positions with two independent companies in Oklahoma as well as Union Pacific Resources (Anadarko).

Mr. Rivers holds a B.S. Degree in Geology from the University of Oklahoma and has been an active member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists for 34 years.

Over the years, Mr. Rivers has provided generous support to several non-profit organizations including the American Heart Association, MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, and the Tarrant County Food Bank.



Will Kiker – Vice President, Business Development

Mr. Kiker has 10 years’ experience in the industry involving capital raising, business development, land work, acquisitions and divestments.  He previously cofounded True Oil Company LLC, a private-equity backed company, and HPC Energy LLC, a private family company, both in the Permian Basin.  Mr. Kiker worked as a Landman for Henry Resources LLC where he developed and managed purchase and sale agreements, joint operating agreements, oil and gas sales contracts, mineral leasing and purchasing and many other land-related tasks. Prior to joining Henry Resources LLC, he was a Landman for Chevron U.SA. Inc. overseeing operations in the Permian Basin throughout Texas and New Mexico, as well as Colorado.  Mr. Kiker earned a Master of Science degree in 2003 and a Bachelor of Science degree in 2001 from Angelo State University.



Brian Dutton – Vice President, Chief Financial Officer

Mr. Dutton became our Vice President and Chief Financial Officer in November 2021. He is a Certified Public Accountant with more than 25 years of corporate finance, public accounting and financial reporting experience. From 2015 to 2021, Mr. Dutton served as the Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer of Vine Energy. He had previously been the Vice President of Finance and Accounting of Silver Creek Oil & Gas from 2012 to 2015. Mr. Dutton was also employed by Quicksilver Resources where he held various positions in accounting and finance from 2008 to 2012. He began his finance career with PricewaterhouseCoopers in 1998. Mr. Dutton holds a Bachelor of Business in Finance and Accounting from Oklahoma City University.



Daniel P. O’Toole – Vice President, Land

Mr. O’Toole is a Certified Petroleum Landman (CPL) with over 40 years experience in the oil and gas industry. Most recently, he was employed with Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc. as a Senior Land Negotiator in the New Ventures Group responsible for acquiring substantial amounts of acreage for new development projects throughout the Mid-Continent Area. Mr. O’Toole has extensive experience negotiating purchase & sale agreements and managing field brokers in the acquisition and divestiture processes as well as managing land processes for drilling programs. Prior to joining Encana, Mr. O’Toole served as an independent land consultant to Tom Brown, Inc. and Union Pacific Resources/Anadarko Petroleum. Mr. O’Toole received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Notre Dame.



Warren Shirley - Vice President, Operations

Mr. Shirley joined Crimson Energy Partners IV in April 2018 as V.P. of Operations. He began his oil & gas industry career in 1978 after serving in the United States Army. He previously founded Warren Production Services and later Tenacity Energy Services. Both companies provided production and consulting services for all aspects of operations across several basins for JM Huber Corp., Rosewood Resources, Swift Energy Company, Penn Virginia Oil & Gas, Rockford Energy & Woodbine Production among others including 2000 to 2004 Crimson Energy Partners I, 2009 to 2014 Crimson Energy Partners III.

As Crimson Energy Partners IV V.P. of Operations, Mr. Shirley is responsible for overall management of field operations & personnel.

A member of Austin Chalk API since 1996, Mr. Shirley has served as an officer and member of the board of directors. He has also served as chairman and co-chairman for several successful community and benevolence fundraiser events.



Tony Krob – Vice President, Drilling & Completion

Mr. Krob has over 20 years of experience in the petroleum industry as a drilling supervisor on horizontal wells in multiple basins throughout Texas, Louisiana, Kansas, and Oklahoma, Corpus Christi Bay and offshore Gulf of Mexico.  He has gained extensive experience on horizontal wells in the Eagle Ford, Woodbine, Buda and Barnett Shale, as well as, horizontal underbalanced, high-pressure wells throughout the Austin Chalk. He has established a track record of completing projects under budget and setting performance records while working in areas that are considered difficult to drill by many operators.