The University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball staff gained another member today as Brendan Gross joins the Skyhawks as an assistant coach and video coordinator for the 2026-27 campaign.
Gross comes to UT Martin after three seasons as a student assistant coach at Lake Superior State, an NCAA Division II institution located in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. Working under the program’s all-time winningest head men’s basketball coach in Steve Hettinga, Gross was part of a highly successful stretch where the Lakers went a combined 72-28 (including a school-record 30 victories in 2024-25) with a 41-17 record in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play.
Lake Superior State made deep runs in the NCAA Tournament in each of Gross’ first two seasons on staff, reaching the Elite 8 round with a 30-7 campaign (16-4 GLIAC) in 2024-25 after appearing in the Sweet 16 with a 23-9 mark (13-5 GLIAC) in 2023-24. The Lakers set a school record for furthest advancement in a postseason tournament in its NCAA Era (since 1972) in both of Gross’ first two seasons on the staff.
In 2025-26, Gross was part of a Lake Superior State squad that went 19-12 (12-8 GLIAC) after losing the top eight players from the previous season. The Lakers ranked in the top-25 nationally in 10 separate categories, including assist-to-turnover ratio (1.58, fourth) and three-point field goals made per game (10.8, seventh).
Lake Superior State also ranked amongst the top-25 in the NCAA Division II ranks in seven different statistical categories in 2024-25 and five separate categories in 2023-24, including a fifth-place finish in three-point field goal percentage (.412).
Overall, Gross coached six Lakers to a combined eight All-GLIAC honors, two GLIAC Defensive Players of the Year (Hunter Soper in 2024-25, Kingsley Perkins in 2023-24) and a GLIAC Freshman of the Year (Karter Richards in 2025-26). The impressive list of individual accolades was highlighted by a pair of two-time All-GLIAC first teamers in Perkins (two-time NCAA Midwest Regional All-Tournament selection) and Tyson Edmondson (NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional Most Outstanding Player, NABC All-Midwest Region first team and D2CCA All-Midwest Region in 2024-25).
“I am so excited about Brendan joining our staff,” UT Martin head coach Jeremy Shulman said. “He’s such an incredible bright young mind and an impressive young coach. I think he’s going to be a future star in this business.”
A Brimley, Mich. native, Gross graduated from Lake Superior State in just 18 months, earning a degree in business administration in December 2025. At just 20 years old, Gross is officially the youngest assistant men’s basketball coach in NCAA Division I history.
