By Anna Braunsdorf
NCAA.org
As a former student-athlete at Belmont Abbey College and the current director of athletics at Georgia Regents University, Clint Bryant has spent the past 40 years as a member of the Division II community. His success as a student-athlete, coach and administrator led him to be Conference Carolinas’ choice for the Division II 40th Anniversary Tribute Team being honored this year. Bryant grew up in a Maryland city near Washington, D.C. In high school, he was a standout basketball player and one of the team’s top students. He had never heard of Belmont Abbey until Bob Hussey, the head basketball coach at the time, gave Bryant an opportunity that not many young, inner-city kids received. Bryant played forward for the Belmont Abbey basketball team from 1973 to 1977 and was one of the Crusaders’ leading rebounders in all four seasons. In addition to his athletics ability, Bryant also excelled in the classroom. He received the Marty Thomas Scholar-Athlete Award his senior year, which is given annually to a Belmont Abbey student-athlete who has demonstrated both academic and athletics success. “At Belmont I found my love for academics and the importance of academics, because I realized what young people coming out of inner-city backgrounds or some tough backgrounds can achieve if they apply themselves,” Bryant said. “The start that Belmont and Bob Hussey gave me has allowed me to do some things that I probably wouldn’t have done without that experience.” After graduating from Belmont Abbey with a degree in business administration in 1977, Bryant went on to earn a master’s degree in personnel services from Clemson University. He then began working as an assistant basketball coach at Clemson under head coach Bill Foster before following Foster to Miami (Fla.). Seven years later, Bryant was promoted to associate head coach, which is when Georgia Regents University came calling. He became both the school’s director of athletics and head men’s basketball coach in 1988. Bryant spent nine seasons as head coach of the GRU basketball team (previously known as Augusta State University). During that time, the Jaguars won 106 games; and following the 1990-91 campaign, Bryant was named the Big South Coach of the Year. Bryant has perhaps been even more successful in his role as director of athletics, which he still holds. Under his oversight, Georgia Regents’ 13-sport athletics department has experienced unprecedented success, and Jaguars programs are consistently in contention for conference and regional honors. During the past seven seasons, 43 teams have qualified for NCAA Regional competition and 28 have earned national rankings. Always seeking a balance between athletics and academics, Bryant has also pushed Georgia Regents’ student-athletes to excel in the classroom. In 2012, the school earned the Peach Belt Conference Presidents’ Academic Award for the first time in its history. The award recognizes excellence in academics for student-athletes across all sports, of which Bryant is particularly proud. “What makes Division II a different kind of place is that it’s about the student-athletes,” Bryant said. “It’s about the experiences that you have not only as an athlete, but also as a student. It’s about those student-athletes who come in there as 17- and 18-year-olds and leave as productive adults in four or five years. Then running into them 15 or 20 years later, and they say something like, ‘Hey, you guys made a difference. Thanks for giving me the opportunity.’ ” In his 26 years as director of athletics, Bryant has certainly given plenty of student-athletes an opportunity to achieve greatness, just as coach Hussey did for him back in 1973. “The reason I’ve stayed in intercollegiate athletics for as many years as I have is because I see the effect that it has on young people,” Bryant said. “I find myself mentoring a lot of young, black athletes about what a college education can do, how it can change your path, how it can give you opportunities for things you never thought you’d have the opportunity of doing.” The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics named Bryant the Division II Athletic Director of the Year for the Southeast Region in 2007; and in 2012, the Minority Opportunities Athletic Association presented Bryant with the Distinguished Service Award, which honors those who promote the understanding and appreciation of diversity in all its forms. Bryant was also inducted into the Belmont Abbey Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013. Bryant has served on numerous Division II governance committees. He chaired the Division II Management Council twice, including when it was first established in 1997-98. Bryant also served on the Diversity Leadership Strategic Planning Committee, the Division II Legislation Committee, the Division II Budget and Finance Committee, the Division II Championships Committee and the NCAA Men’s Basketball Rules Committee. Bryant is also heavily involved in the Augusta, Ga., community, and he consistently embodies and promotes leadership and equality. Needless to say, few people are as tied to Division II as Bryant. “Our slogan says, ‘I chose Division II,’” Bryant said. “But I say Division II chose me.”