March 21, 2007

ERIE, Pa. - Mercyhurst College head football coach Marty Schaetzle has announced the additions of Barris Grant and John Thompson to the coaching staff. Barris will serve as the team's Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers Coach, while Thompson will coach the defensive backs.

Grant comes to Mercyhurst after a stint as the Academic Coach for the Play it Smart program run by the National Football Foundation. His responsibilities included conducting study halls and registering students for the NCAA Clearinghouse. During that time, Grant also acted as the Offensive Coordinator/Assistant Head Coach for Irvington (N.J.) High School. Grant's 2005 team set the school record for total offense.

Prior to working for the NFF, Grant was the Co-Defensive Coordinator/Recruiting Coordinator/Linebacker coach at Division II Benedict College. All three of his teams finished in the top 16 in Division II in defense during his tenure. The 2002 team finished third and had the first winning season in school history. In 2003, Benedict was seventh in team defense. The 2004 squad had the second winning season in the program's history and was ranked 16th in defense.

He also spent one season as the Defensive Coordinator at Irvington High School.

Grant got his coaching start at Division I-A Mississippi State, where he was also a defensive standout as a player. He served as a student assistant for the 2000 team that ranked 23rd in total defense and played in the Independence Bowl. As a player, he was named the Defensive MVP of the Peach Bowl in 1999.

Grant graduated from Mississippi State with a bachelor of arts degree in Educational Psychology in 2002 and is currently pursuing a master's degree in Educational Leadership from Bloomfield (N.J.) College.

Thompson spent six years at Sacred Heart, serving as the Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Backs from 2002-2005. His first two years he served as the Special Teams Coordinator/Defensive Line Coach. During the 2000 season, the Pioneers had what ties for the largest turnaround in NCAA history, improving from 2-9 the previous season to 10-1. Sacred Heart won the Mid-Major I-AA Championship the next year, going 11-0 and defeated Duquesne in the ECAC Bowl.

Prior to Sacred Heart, Thompson coached for two years at St. Francis (Pa.), where he coached linebackers and defensive backs.

Thompson started his coaching career at Marist, his alma mater. In 1997, the Red Fox backfield was part of a defensive unit that ranked first in the nation and set two NCAA records for yards per carry and rushing yards per game.

Thompson graduated from Marist in 1994 with a degree in Business/Human Resources. The Rome, N.Y. native was a four-year member of the Red Fox football team.