Louisville hired Alabama State safeties coach Grady Brown as a defensive assistant and recruiting coordinator, completing its coaching staff, head coach Bobby Petrino announced on Friday.
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Brown had previously worked alongside secondary coach Lorenzo Ward during his tenure at South Carolina (2012-15), where Ward served as the team's defensive coordinator.
"Hiring Grady Brown is an excellent addition to our defensive staff," Petrino said. "A detailed technician, Brown is a bright, young football coach who boasts a lot of experience coaching. He does an excellent job in terms of teaching the players, and is a proven recruiter, which will be a tremendous asset in enhancing the talent in our program."
Brown, who worked as the Gamecocks' secondary coach, helped Ward lead a unit that ranked among the top-25 nationally in both scoring defense and total defense. The Gamecocks ranked No. 11 overall in 2012, allowing 315.5 total yards per game and No. 13 in scoring defense, with an average of 18.2 points per game.
South Carolina also ranked No. 12 in scoring defense with an average of 20.3 points allowed per game.
"The makeup of his staff over the years has shown his loyalty to those guys, which is hard to find in this profession," Brown said. "The relationship I have with Coach Ward - someone I've known since I was 16 years old - was something that was intriguing about this job. Hiring a successful coach like Brian VanGorder to run the defense, someone who has had success at all levels, was a plus for me in taking advantage of this opportunity."
Brown had previously spent two seasons working as Southern Miss' cornerbacks coach from 2010-11, as well as having worked as a defensive assistant and with the strength & conditioning staff at LSU, among several other schools.
