The Earl Brothers Continue To Drive Each Other To Success In Coaching

Rivalry between brothers isn’t anything new. Just ask Abel how things went with his older brother Cain as the original posterchildren for family differences.

Hopefully, at some point – assuming all parties survive into adulthood – maturity kicks in, testosterone levels diminish and an onset of wisdom allows for some good-natured reflection.

But the competitive fire that burns within University of Tennessee at Chattanooga head basketball coach Dan Earl and his younger brother, Brian, who is in his first season at the helm of William & Mary, has never abated since their early days in Medford Lakes, N.J.

In his third season with Chattanooga where he was named Southern Conference Coach of the Year on Wednesday, Dan has guided the Mocs to 14 wins in their final 15 SoCon contests to capture the regular season title with a 15-3 mark, improving their overall record to 23-8. Riding an 11-game winning streak, the Mocs head to Asheville, N.C. later this week as the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament.

After seven successful years at Cornell, Brian has spearheaded a resurgence at William & Mary this season. Named as a finalist for the Hugh Durham Award given to the top mid-major coach in college basketball, he has guided the Tribe to the No. 4 seed in the Coastal Athletic Association tournament. After winning only a combined 15 conference games the previous three seasons, W&M is 17-14 overall and 11-7 in league play this year.

The Earls are among five sets of brothers currently coaching at the Division I level, joining Dan (UConn) and Bobby Hurley (Arizona State), Bryce (Grand Canyon) and Scott Drew (Baylor), Archie (Rhode Island) and Sean Miller (Xavier), and James (Yale) and Joe Jones (Boston U).

Sharing the pressures of coaching at the collegiate level has provided a cathartic outlet for the Earls, as they readily admit that they are cut from the same cloth when it comes to their personalities and demeanors.

“I think a lot of coaches tend to see the glass half empty,” Brian said. “You’re always looking for the things that are going wrong or could go wrong.”

Their approach is one of cautious optimism while remaining on an even keel, respecting every opponent as if they are the Lakers. They refuse to count their chickens before they hatch, assuming they’ll contract some rare avian disease and not even survive.

“I never want to be viewed as pessimistic, but it’s almost part of our DNA to worry about things,” Dan said. “Brian is the same way. You never take winning for granted, but you also understand that winning is more about relief in achieving goals than it is about celebrating.”

Away from the basketball court, Dan is approachable, engaging and possesses a quick wit. But his mind is constantly churning, striving for perfection while fretting over some meddlesome detail about his team that keeps him up at night. Things like defending ball screens, boxing out under the defensive boards, too many careless turnovers – the same things that tend to rob most head coaches of shuteye this time of year.

Brian said that he and Dan carry with them many of the traits of Eeyore from the “Winnie the Pooh” cartoon series, someone who spends his time worrying and a natural skeptic.

“The only thing I would say is that Eeyore didn't have a snapping point where he turns into a grizzly bear,” Brian said. “The negativity is in both of us, but it's not depressive. It's a burning desire and anger where I never think I’m going to win a game, and he’s the same way.”

That same combative energy surfaces when the Earls are asked who possessed the greater skills during their playing days, as Dan enjoyed a stellar career at Penn State and Brian was a key component of some record-setting years at Princeton.

“It depends who you ask,” Brian said. “I'll always say me, and he’ll always say him. He could run faster, but I could run longer. Definitely he was bigger and stronger. But when it comes to basketball, you would have our friends drinking and taking sides forever. But I'm definitely the better shooter.”

While Dan is unwilling to admit his little brother was the better athlete, he does concede he possesses better hair at this stage of life.

“Mine has pretty much all turned gray, and he’s still got a full head of curly locks going for him,” Dan said.

But the one place where Dan decidedly owns the upper hand is on the tennis court, his other passion besides basketball.

“He's really into it, and I’ll admit that he’s pretty good,” Brian said. “He came here and played one of my assistants, who's also very good, and held his own. I only play tennis when he makes me play and then he tells me why I'm not good.”

While focused on the details of overseeing their respective programs, the Earl brothers remain in regular contact via a group text that includes another close friend in the coaching business, Colgate’s Matt Langel.

“it’s got to be the most negative text chain ever,” Brian said. “It’s a place to vent among coaches, talking about ways to attack certain things. We'll talk occasionally, but we still grind on each other with our personalities. So, it's tough sometimes.”

Dan sees their interactions as a venue to lower his guard in the midst of the crucible of coaching at the college level.

“It’s good for us to encourage each other, to commiserate and let off some steam,” Dan said. “It’s a safe place for us to remain connected and to be real with each other.”

The Earls come from a basketball family, and their deep-seated will to win was instilled in them by their father. Denny Earl was known as a defensive stopper during his college days at Rutgers in the 1960s, where he was teammates with the late Jim Valvano. He was a hard-nosed competitor who regaled his sons with tales of trying to shut down Bill Bradley when the future Hall of Famer played at Princeton.

With Dan 20 months older than Brian, the Earls became South Jersey high school basketball royalty. But at home, the rivalry between the brothers often evolved into some tense moments around the dinner table.

“We were both very competitive,” Dan said. “I was bigger so I always tried to use my size against him. But there was also a deep sense of loyalty toward Brian, and I was protective of him. Whenever somebody tried to pick on him, I would step in to defend him.”

The Earl brothers helped lead Shawnee High School to a 59-3 record during Dan’s junior and senior years. Dan was named a Parade All-American, and was the USA Today 1993 New Jersey Player of the Year before moving on to start as a freshman at Penn State.

“We had some really big moments together,” Brian said. “I was a freshman and he was a junior when we beat Atlantic City on a last second shot and then won the New Jersey state championship. The whole experience was memorable. We were close, but not like hug each other close. Being competitive brothers created an interesting relationship.”

Brian went on to have a standout career at Princeton from 1995-99, playing for the legendary coach Pete Carril his freshman season and finished as the school’s all-time leader in made 3-pointers with 281. Dan was at Penn State from 1993-99 including a medical redshirt year and a three-time captain, one of two Nittany Lions with 1,000 points and 400 assists for his career and is still listed No. 3 on the school’s all-time assists leaders.

“When you look at our playing résumés from college, I think that shows that I was more about the team and Brian was just more interested in scoring,” Dan said with a wry smile.

After brief stints playing professionally, it was inevitable that the Earl brothers eventually ended up choosing a career path in coaching. Their father had spent the better part of 30 years organizing, coaching and teaching basketball in South Jersey, having previously played and coached U.S. Army Basketball at Fort Monmouth, N.J. and in Korea.

Dan served as an assistant at Penn State and Navy before landing his first head coaching post at VMI in 2015. Brian took a different path into coaching. He was a successful business executive when an old Princeton teammate, Sydney Johnson, convinced him to join Johnson’s staff when he landed the head coaching duties at their alma mater.

The brothers faced challenges of different sorts in their first head coaching assignments. Dan was trying to recruit talent to a military school in rural Virginia, while Brian was competing in the Ivy League where athletic scholarships are not awarded.

“I think he had the harder job at VMI,” Brian said. “Cornell has ways to help players to such a degree where it’s almost like a full ride. At VMI you’re not getting a large group of really good basketball players who also want to march around campus. That’s one of the hardest places to coach in the country.”

After achieving success at their former stops, the Earl brothers have now established themselves among the more widely respected coaches in college basketball. They find joy these days in celebrating their journey with their father, who has become their stable sounding board and a constant encourager.

“We talk to our dad after games and can share with him our frustrations,” Dan said. “He’s different than when we were growing up, and he always seems to turn the conversation into a positive no matter how things are going. I know Brian and I both value his input.”

Brian has enjoyed watching the Mocs’ success this season, and is quick to praise the job done by his big brother.

“Dan would never admit it, but he’s got Chattanooga doing really good things right now,” Brian said. “They don’t turn it over, they take good shots and they defend. They are formidable. I’m proud of what he’s done there this season.”

As both squads prepare for their conference tournaments, there’s no time for celebrating just yet. There will be plenty of time to reflect after the season. The brotherly rivalry that was first spawned on the South Jersey hardwood still continues today. But they wouldn’t have it any other way. Because if the truth be known, they have become inseparable and each other’s guiding light in their pursuit of excellence.

Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com