CLEMSON – There is one game on the ACC schedule every year that head coach Brad Brownell does not look forward to — the Boston College game.

Despite Brownell’s dislike for coaching against his former assistants Earl Grant and Steve Smith, both of which are now at Boston College, No. 22 Clemson came out with a 74-50 win over the Eagles at Littlejohn Coliseum Tuesday night.

“Obviously I just don’t like playing (Grant) and Steve over there,  those guys are a part of what made our program what it is,” Brownell said. “I love them and their families,” he added. “They’re unbelievable people and mentors and  they’re doing a good job in a tough situation. When you got to play against those guys, I don’t enjoy it at all. I don’t even enjoy preparing for it.”

Grant spent four seasons at Clemson (15-3, 5-0 ACC) from 2010-14 after finishing a playing career at Georgia College and assistant coaching stints at Winthrop and Wichita State. During his time in the Upstate, the North Charleston, S.C., native personally signed 10 of the Tigers’ 15 recruits.

He worked to develop greats like K.J McDaniels, Rod Hall, and Andre Young before being named the head coach at the College of Charleston in 2014. He was named head coach at Boston College (7-10, 0-4 ACC) in March of 2021 after helping the Cougars to several dominant seasons.

Smith, now in his second year at Boston College, served on Brownell’s staff for seven years before helping the Florida State Seminoles to a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 2021 and an ACC Championship in 2020. 

“They were part of the foundation in some of the early years, and the hard struggles, and the going to Greenville, just recruiting in a time when it was hard,” Brownell said. “Facilities weren’t up to par and some other things were going on illegally around us that made it difficult and it  was tough. Those guys’ blood, sweat and tears kept us fighting.”

The feelings of familiarity, camaraderie turned to competition, is not limited to Brownell. With the Clemson win last night, the Tigers are now 4-3 against the Eagles in Grant’s tenure in Chestnut Hill. The biggest loss at the hand of Grant and his staff came with a 76-55 loss in the ACC Tournament in 2024.

The largest win for the Tigers came Tuesday night.

“It’s still weird,” Grant said postgame. “I spent a lot of time here. Got a lot of relationships all around here, and administration, as well as the coaches, but we’ve been battling. We’ve had some battles and we got a good relationship, but we can’t talk basketball anymore. 

“We got to battle each other and compete against each other. So, we’ve had some really good tough battles and they got the best of us today.”

Since Smith and Grant coached at Clemson, the NIL landscape, recruiting tactics, and even ACC opponents have changed drastically. Still, the connection over building a program together has never faded, and the Tigers are still reaping the benefits of Brownell’s early years over a decade later.

One of the improvements during Brownell’s career, a renovated Littlejohn Coliseum, will host its second game this week on Saturday, when the Tigers take on the Miami Hurricanes (15-2, 4-0 ACC) at 2:15 p.m.

A win would put the Tigers 6-0 in ACC play for the first time since 2023.