Earl Grant is in his third season as an assistant coach for the men's basketball program. Grant, a native of North Charleston, SC, came to Clemson in 2010 after serving as an assistant coach for three seasons at Wichita State.

"Earl really helps us with recruiting, especially with him being from the state of South Carolina," said Clemson Head Coach Brad Brownell. "He has a great base of recruiting South Carolina and Georgia. He's worked for a very good coach in successful programs. He knows what it takes to win. He's a guy who's wanted to be at Clemson. He's a rising star in our business because of how hard he works and the contacts he makes in recruiting."

That was evident in 2010-11, the first year of the Brownell era. Clemson put together a 22-12 overall record, 9-7 in the ACC. The Tigers earned the No. 4 seed for the ACC Tournament and advanced to the semifinals of that event in Greensboro. Clemson also went to a fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament, this time winning its first-round game in Dayton, OH over UAB, 70-52.

Demontez Stitt and Andre Young had outstanding seasons under the watchful eye of Grant. Stitt was third-team All-ACC and first-team All-ACC Tournament. Young was the ACC's leader with a 2.55 assist-to-turnover ratio. A year later, as a senior, Young led the conference in steals per game and was named to the All-ACC Defensive Team.

Grant helped the Tiger program to a 16-15 overall record in 2011-12, 8-8 in the ACC. It was the fifth straight season at .500 or better in league play for the Tigers, a program record. He was a big reason Clemson won games over eventual NCAA Tournament participants in Florida State, NC State and Virginia.

Clemson has been strong defensively in two seasons with Grant part of its coaching staff. In 2010-11, the Tigers were 24th nationally in scoring defense. Last season, Clemson yielded just 60.6 points per game to the opposition, the second-best figure among ACC schools.

He personally signed five of Clemson's 10 players recruited by Brownell's staff since it has been in place. In the fall of 2011, he inked three players, including South Carolina's AAAA Player-of-the-Year in Jordan Roper and Georgia native and consenus top-150 prospect Jaron Blossomgame.

Grant spent six years working under Gregg Marshall, first at Winthrop and then at Wichita State. He helped the Eagles to three consecutive Big South championships and three straight NCAA Tournament appearances.

In 2004-05, the Eagles were 27-6 overall. The next season, Winthrop finished the year with a 23-8 overall record and came within two points of upsetting Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament. In 2007, Grant helped the Eagles to a 29-5 overall record and unblemished 14-0 mark in Big South play.

The 2007 campaign was a memorable one for Winthrop. With Grant's assistance, the Eagles claimed a 74-64 upset over No. 6 seed Notre Dame in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. It was Winthrop's first NCAA Tournament win in seven tries. Grant had a positive effect on the play of guard Torrell Martin, one of the Eagles' top players in the history of the program.

Grant was a part of Marshall's staff at Wichita State from 2007-10, when the Shockers made gradual improvement each season. In 2008-09, Wichita State made its first postseason appearance in three years and also defeated one of the nation's top mid-major programs in Siena during the regular season.

In 2009-10, Wichita State improved its win total by eight and finished 25-10, 12-6 in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Shockers advanced to the championship game of the MVC tournament and also earned a bid to the National Invitation Tournament.

Prior to joining Marshall's staff at Winthrop, Grant was an assistant coach at The Citadel from 2002-04.

Grant played two years at the Division II level at Georgia College in Milledgeville, GA. He led the school to two appearances in the NCAA Tournament and to consecutive Peach Belt Conference championships (1999, 2000). In 2000, the Bobcats advanced to the Elite Eight of the Division II national tournament. He was a first-team All-Peach Belt selection in 2000.

Grant earned an undergraduate degree in psychology from Georgia College in 2000. He and his wife, Jacci, have three sons: Trey (6), Eyzaiah (4) and Elonzo (1).

*Courtesy Clemson Media Guide