Bio

Jared Grasso enters his sixth season as the head coach of the Bryant University men's basketball program in 2023-24. Grasso signed a contract extension through 2026-27 on April 4, 2022.

Grasso, the 2021 USBWA District I Coach of the Year and the 2022 Jim Phelan Northeast Conference Coach of the Year has turned the Bryant men's basketball program around in his five years on the sidelines. Bryant is 79-67 in five seasons under Grasso and won its first-ever NEC Regular Season and NEC Tournament titles and advanced to the program's first NCAA Division I Tournament in 2021-22. Grasso has coached five All-NEC honorees, three All-America East selections, one NEC Rookie of the Year, one America East Newcomer of the Year and five All-District honorees. Under his tutelage, Bryant has proven to be one of the nation's best player development programs. 

The 2022-23 season saw the Black and Gold win 15+ games for the fourth-straight season, finishing 17-13 overall. Playing its first season in the America East, Bryant finished 8-8 in conference play, qualifying for the America East Tournament. Bryant picked up wins against Syracuse, FIU, Stony Brook, Manhattan and Towson. The victory over Syracuse was Bryant's second against an ACC member. Bryant led the America East and ranked 22nd nationally with 79.4 points per game. The Bulldogs also landed three players on the All-America East teams (Sherif Gross-Bullock, Earl Timberlake, Charles Pride) and had Sherif Gross-Bullock earn America East Newcomer of the Year honors. The player development piece of Grasso's program continued as Gross-Bullock, Antwan Walker, Earl Timberlake and Kvonn Cramer all had career years after transferring into Bryant. Gross-Bullock led the America East in scoring, making it two-straight years the Black and Gold have recruited a transfer and that player has led the league in scoring. 

Coming off a 20-21 season in which there was unfinished business, Bryant put together one of the greatest seasons in program history in 2021-22. The Black and Gold set the DI program record with 22 wins and claimed the program's first-ever regular-season and tournament titles at any level. Bryant's NEC Tournament championship qualified it for the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championships. The Bulldogs fell to Wright St. in the First Four. The journey there was a tough one for the Bulldogs as they started the season 4-7. Bryant rebounded to win 11 of its next 12 contests, including nine straight. After a Feb. 12 loss to LIU, the Bulldogs would win its next seven, including a showdown with Wagner in the regular-season finale that clinched Bryant's first-ever regular-season title. Bryant would then win three straight in the NEC Tournament at home, exacting revenge against Mount St. Mary's with a semifinal victory before rolling Wagner, 70-43, in the NEC Championship. 

Bryant's 21-22 season was highlighted by several outstanding individual performances, including Peter Kiss finishing as the nation's leading scorer with 25.2 ppg. Kiss posted 10 30-point games, including six-straight during the month of February, to finish with the fourth-most points in a single season in program history. Charles Pride also excelled, scoring just under 18 ppg and posting 8.6 rpg, the second-highest output in a single season in DI program history. Pride also provided one of the nation's best three-game stretches when he scored 110 points, including a DI single-game program record 44 in a win at SFU. 

The 2020-21 season will go down as one of the best in program history for the Bulldogs as they went 15-7 overall, advanced to and hosted the Northeast Conference Championship for the first time in program history and earned a postseason berth for the second time in DI program history. Bryant started the season with a near-upset of Syracuse and went on to post a 93-88 victory over UMass, Bryant's second win over an A-10 program in as many seasons. The Black and Gold would finish second in the NEC standings and advanced to their first title game with an 85-55 victory over Sacred Heart. Bryant then hosted the NEC Championship inside the Chace Athletic Center on ESPN2, falling to Mount St. Mary's 73-68. The Bulldogs, however, received a bid to the CBI, facing Coastal Carolina. 

Bryant was one of the most feared offensive teams in the nation in 20-21, finishing the season in the top 10 nationally in tempo and points per game. The Bulldogs finished fourth nationally with 83.8 points per game and also ranked eighth in three-point FG defense, 22nd in three-point FG per game, 13th in three-point FG percentage and 15th in rebounds per game. Bryant also had several individuals earn postseason honors, led by First Team All-NEC and USBWA All-District selection Peter Kiss. 

The second season for Grasso in Smithfield saw a continuation in the rise of the Bryant program. The Bulldogs won 15 games in 2019-20 - Bryant's fourth-most in its Division I history - including the program's first win over an Atlantic 10 opponent and three victories over Ivy League members - in addition to another near-upset of a Big Ten opponent with a two-point defeat at Rutgers in November. Michael Green III was named NEC Rookie of the Year, while the freshman trio of Green, Benson Lin and Charles Pride combined to win nine NEC Rookies of the Week, the most in program history. Newcomer Hall Elisias set Bryant's single-season blocks record with 78 and ranked third in the nation in KenPom block percentage, while Patrick Harding broke Alex Francis' single-season rebounding record with 280 and ranked fourth nationally in KenPom defensive rebounding percentage. Adam Grant finished his illustrious Bryant career second in D1 program history in scoring and third in NEC history with 305 made three-pointers thanks to a single-season program-record 101 threes on the year.

Grasso authored one of the nation's best improvements in 2018-19, as the Bulldogs were the only team in the nation to triple their win total from a year ago. Bryant collected season sweeps of Wagner and Mount St. Mary's and posted a 7-11 mark in NEC play after recording just two conference wins the year before. The Bulldogs battled No. 24 Iowa for 40 minutes in their non-conference finale, falling 72-67 to a Hawkeyes team that would advance to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. Adam Grant and SaBastian Townes were named All-NEC selections and Grasso recruit Joe Kasperzyk was selected to the NEC All-Rookie Team. Grasso was named a finalist for the Joe B. Hall Award, given to the nation's top first-year coach, for his efforts in his first season in Smithfield.

The seven-win improvement in Grasso's first year at the helm ranked seventh among the 55 Division I head coaches in their first season leading a program. Bryant, which had missed the NEC Tournament in two of the previous three seasons, battled to a 67-63 defeat at top-seeded Saint Francis U in the NEC Quarterfinals.

Grasso was tabbed to lead the Bryant program after most recently working for the last eight seasons at Iona, where he helped the Gaels to unparalleled success both at Iona and in the MAAC.

Iona posted a record of 182-92 (.664) and a mark of 112-40 (.737) in the MAAC from 2010-18, as the Gaels staff led by Tim Cluess became the fastest to 100 MAAC wins in conference history. The Gaels made five NCAA Tournament appearances (2012, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018) in Grasso’s eight years in New Rochelle, with the 2011-12 Iona team being one of just two in MAAC history to earn an at-large selection to the NCAA Tournament. The Gaels won three MAAC regular-season championships (2012, 2014, 2015) during Grasso’s tenure, with the 2014 and 2015 iterations of the Gaels qualifying for the NIT.

The Gaels battled to win the MAAC Tournament Championship in each of the last three seasons, making Iona one of three programs from a mid-major conference to qualify for three straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2016-18. Iona advanced to the MAAC Championship Final seven times in Grasso’s eight years at Iona, including a conference-record six straight appearances from 2013-2018.

As Iona’s recruiting coordinator, Grasso has been instrumental in the recruiting and coaching of a group that includes 11 MAAC first-team all-conference selections, three MAAC Player of the Year honorees and one MAAC Rookie of the Year during his eight seasons with the Gaels. Iona has seen 22 players play professionally over the last seven seasons between the NBA, NBA G-League and international opportunities. The Gaels are the only NCAA Division I program to send a player to the prestigious Portsmouth Invitational Tournament for five straight seasons.

Prior to Iona, Grasso spent four seasons on the staff at Fordham, including the majority of the final year as interim head coach. Grasso was the lead recruiter in the Rams’ 2009 recruiting class which was ranked in the top 25 nationally by Scout.com. In 2006-07, Grasso helped guide Fordham to its winningest season in 15 years.

Grasso spent the 2005-06 season at his alma mater, Quinnipiac, where he recruited a pair of first-team All-NEC selections who would go on to be 1,000-point scorers in Hamden. Prior to Quinnipiac, Grasso worked two seasons on the staff at Hartford, where he recruited a first-team All-America East honoree. Grasso began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Hofstra in the 2002-03 season.

A four-year starter and two-year captain at Quinnipiac as a guard, Grasso currently ranks 23rd on the Bobcats’ all-time scoring list with 1,134 career points. He is fifth on the all-time list in assists with 404 and ranks fourth all-time in three-point field goals with 216. He graduated from Quinnipiac with a degree in mass communications in May 2002 and was elected to the Quinnipiac Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014.

A native of Syosset, New York, Grasso attended St. Anthony’s High School in South Huntington, New York, from 1994-98. He earned honorable mention All-American honors as a senior at St. Anthony’s after averaging 23 points, seven rebounds and eight assists per game. He, his wife Andrea and their two sons currently reside in North Smithfield.

What they’re saying about Jared Grasso

“Congratulations to Bryant University on their hiring of Jared Grasso. They have hired a tremendous coach and person. Jared was instrumental in all of the success that we have had at Iona. He has excelled as a recruiter, as a coach on the floor and most importantly as a father, husband, brother, son, and friend. He is an extremely hard-working, loyal and dedicated individual. I have had the pleasure to work alongside of Jared for the last eight years and we have been a part of many special moments at Iona College. The Iona community is going to miss Jared but we are all looking forward to watching his success in the future.” – Tim Cluess, Iona

“Bryant has hit a home run by hiring Jared. He has an unmatched work ethic and an engaging personality that will benefit not only the basketball program but the entire Bryant community.” – Phil Martelli, Michigan

“Jared is a great coach and recruiter and all he needed was this opportunity at Bryant to show it. The future of Bryant Basketball is very bright. I'm very excited for Jared!” – Mick Cronin, UCLA

"Jared is one of the best evaluators of talent and recruiters in the business. He has paid his dues and deserves success. He will bring immediate passion and excitement to Bryant and I look forward to watching him build a winner." – Steve Masiello, Manhattan