Convincing D.J. Grisewood to follow him to Atlantic Christian (now Barton) College in the late 1980s was one of the best things head men’s coach Gary Hall would ever do for his soccer program.
Grisewood, a native of Decatur, Ga., was planning to play for Coach Hall at Campbell University, but when Hall returned to AC (his alma mater) to take over the soccer program in the fall of 1989, he asked the speedy forward from Shamrock High School to join him.
Grisewood, who wanted to attend a small school, agreed. And, as they say, the rest is history.
AC was coming off a miserable 3-20 season in 1988; so when Hall was brought in, he needed some big guns to turn the program around. He found Grisewood while scouting one of the 5-foot-11, 145-pound forward’s teammates. The two began talking and hit it off.
Grisewood made his college coach look good, scoring 31 goals and 14 assists over the next four seasons. In 1991, he was one of 11 players nationally named to the NAIA All-America First Team, along with teammate Pat O’Boyle (a 2003 Hall of Fame inductee).
The Bulldogs went 12-3-2 that season (best win percentage in school history at that time) behind 13 goals and five assists from Grisewood, who was the top scorer in the Carolinas Conference. Barton tied High Point University for the 1991 CIAC regular-season title. Grisewood and O’Boyle were All-CAIC and All-District 26 selections as well.
“My sophomore year was my real turning year, then my junior year was almost like a dream in every manner,” recalled Grisewood, who works for his father’s accounting firm and resides in Tucker, Ga. He and his wife, Elizabeth, have two children: Olivia and Owen. Grisewood’s parents, Jake and Woody, were loyal Bulldog fans, only missing a handful of games during their son’s career.
Grisewood and O’Boyle were joined in Hall’s first recruiting class by Jon Kay, Bobby Scott and goalie Warren Smith. All five were four-year starters, and they, along with later recruits, turned the program around.When Corey Taylor joined Grisewood on the front line his sophomore season, the Bulldogs had a one-two punch up front that was hard to handle. The Bulldogs improved to around .500 his sophomore year. The following summer, he and O’Boyle stayed in Wilson and dedicated themselves to getting better. What followed was a banner year for the Bulldogs — and the two young stars.
On a 1991 team that posted 10 shutouts, Grisewood was often the player to find the net with crucial or game-winning goals. The Bulldogs finished third in the CIAC and were 9-6-2 in Grisewood’s final season.
He then served as an assistant coach for the 1993 men’s team, which won the Carolinas Conference regular-season title while he was working on finishing his degree in communications. He is also proud that he made the Dean’s List several times.
Grisewood played at several levels of professional soccer for about six years, but was derailed by five knee surgeries. He suited up for the Raleigh United of the USDSL and the Chattanooga Express indoor soccer team, then finished his career on the practice squad with the Atlanta Ruckus, which was affiliated with the A League.
He coached a number of successful classic level soccer teams for years in the Atlanta area and is currently an assistant coach for his nephew’s Under 16 team.
Grisewood still keeps in touch with a few of his former teammates, including Jamie Neal, O’Boyle and Ginn. He recently has renewed his friendship with Scott Cruikshank, since both men and their families were donors in the recent lighting project for the soccer field at the Barton Outdoor Athletic Complex.
Looking back, Grisewood gives Coach Hall credit for inspiring him to be an elite player.
“I had a rough freshman year and missed my last few games with an injury,” Grisewood remembered. “After the season, Coach Hall had a talk with me and said that, if I worked really hard, I might make all-conference by my senior year.
“That didn’t go over very well with me, so I took that as a personal challenge … and that was a turning point in my life.”
And, that turning point turned into a Hall-of-Fame career.
