Clemson basketball coach Dick Bender retires after 14 year tenure
Clemson basketball coach Dick Bender has put his voice, expertise, and hugs to rest as he has retired from coaching basketball after roughly 40 years in the business and 14 years at Clemson. Coach Bender's career started back in DePauw in 1987 under the late Royce Waltman. He helped the Division III Tigers to an outstanding four-year overall record of 80-30 and to a national runner-up finish in the 1990 NCAA Tournament.
The craziest fact of all, however, is that he coached Brad Brownell during this time frame. After DePauw, Coach Bender served as an assistant coach under former Clemson assistant Ron Bradley at Radford from 1991-97. During Bender's six seasons, he led The Highlanders to the top conference record and non-conference record of all the teams in the Big South.
The rest of his coaching career consisted of stops at Indiana State and, of course, Clemson. PFF Call's Former Clemson Star a "Boom or Bust Free Agent Signing" 📸 Joshua S. Kelly, Joshua S.
Kelly-USA TODAY Sports https://t. co/rqn7j2duC7 pic. twitter.
com/jKFg00rd60 — Clemson Wire (@Clemson_Wire) March 26, 2026 Under Clemson Basketball’s retirement post for Coach Bender, the comments tell the real story. It’s not just fans or surface-level praise; it’s former players showing up with genuine emotion, respect, and gratitude. When that many guys, such as PJ Hall, Ian Schieffelin, and Jestin Porter go out of their way to say something, you can tell he was more than just a coach to them.