Brad Brownell addresses decision to turn down Indiana, commit to Clemson beyond coaching career

Clemson head coach Brad Brownell, who is the winningest head coach in program history, is embarking on his 16th season at the helm after rumors swirled about him possibly taking the Indiana job this offseason.

Instead of accepting the Indiana job and departing the University of Clemson, where he has coached since 2010, he received a new contract with a clause that states he can step down and become a special assistant to the athletic director.

Brownell and the Tigers have experienced a program resurgence in the past two seasons, as they are a combined 51-19 with two NCAA Tournament appearances and a run to the Elite Eight in 2024.

The Evansville, IN native discussed his new clause and why he decided to stay at Clemson instead of accepting the Indiana job, which eventually went to West Virginia head coach Darian DeVries.

“It’s something we talked about when the Indiana thing was going on,” Brownell said. “That was something that I knew Clemson could offer me that another school could not and I’m really proud of the program we have here. I plan on coaching for several years. I’m not saying this because I’m thinking that I’m gonna stop coaching, I could coach 10, 12, 15 more years if I still feel good about it.

“But if something happens and I decided not to, I’d love an opportunity to still be a part of the university and I think I can bring value in other ways. This was a decision that I was making to stay here because this is probably where I’m going to finish my career. There are things I still want to try and accomplish here and I just feel like in some way I can still help.”

Brownell’s coaching career started in 1992 as an assistant at Evansville. He then spent three seasons with Indianapolis before joining the UNC Wilmington staff in 1994. Although his Indiana roots run deep, he didn’t quite feel like making the jump to Indiana would be right for him and his future.

“It was one of those things where my daughters are in Greenville and I’ve been here 15 years. This kinda becomes your program you know. You feel like ‘hey, I wanna take this as far as I feel comfortable taking it and continue to grow and get better.’ But likely, this is where me and my wife and everybody are gonna want to be. And so to leave here to do something else doesn’t seem like the right decision and I’m very grateful to Clemson for giving me the opportunity to coach here for as long as they have.”