Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina Athletics and Catamount football were saddened to learn Friday evening of the passing of former quarterback, assistant coach, and head coach Kent Briggs.
An assistant coach for nine seasons, Briggs, 68, was the head coach at his alma mater from 2002 through 2007. A true Catamount, Briggs spent 15 of his 36-year coaching career at Western Carolina, including the six seasons as the head coach.
Funeral arrangements and details regarding memorial services and opportunities to honor Kent Briggs' memory will be shared as they become available.
The Catamounts earned a pair of signature upset victories under Briggs, defeating second-ranked Furman, 41-21, in Cullowhee in 2005 and No. 19 Eastern Kentucky in 2006. WCU also reclaimed the "Old Mountain Jug" in dramatic fashion in 2004, rallying for a 30-27 victory over archrival Appalachian State in Cullowhee. The win was just the Catamounts' second over the Mountaineers in 20 years. WCU also came within reach of its first-ever victory over an NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) opponent, falling 7-3 at Cincinnati in 2005.
Briggs' impact extended far beyond the game. During the spring and throughout the 2005 season, he remained at the helm of the program while courageously battling head and neck cancer.
Originally from Asheville, N.C., and a standout at A.C. Reynolds High School, Briggs stayed close to home to play for the Catamounts from 1976-79. He started several games as a redshirt freshman in 1976, throwing for 353 yards and four touchdowns while completing 25 of 40 passes with just one interception. After serving as the backup to All-Southern Conference quarterback Mike Pusey in 1977 and 1978, Briggs appeared in nine games as a senior, completing 24 of 41 passes for 270 yards and a touchdown.
Briggs was part of Catamount football teams that posted four consecutive winning seasons from 1976-79, marking the program's first such stretch and the longest until it was matched from 1992-95 and again from 2022-25.
His distinguished coaching career began on the same field that would later bear his mentor Bob Waters's name. Briggs coached under the WCU legend for nine seasons from 1980-88. After serving two years as a graduate assistant, Waters gave Briggs his first full-time coaching position in 1982. He was part of the Catamounts' school-record 10-win season and memorable run to the 1983 NCAA Division I-AA National Championship Game.
WCU Athletics Hall of Famers and All-Americans Louis Cooper and Clyde Simmons played under Briggs' tutelage.
Prior to returning to his alma mater as the program's 11th all-time head coach in 2002, Briggs spent 11 seasons as an assistant coach at North Carolina State. He helped the Wolfpack earn seven postseason berths, including the 1998 Micron PC Bowl, the 1991 and 1994 Peach Bowls, the 1993 Hall of Fame Bowl, the 1992 Gator Bowl, the 1990 All-American Bowl, and the 1989 Copper Bowl.
He also coached for two years at the University of Connecticut before the mountains called him home.
A two-time WCU graduate, Briggs later served as an assistant coach in football and track at nearby Smoky Mountain High School from 2010-12 before guiding Cherokee High School to the 2017 North Carolina state football championship, the first in school history. Following the remarkable turnaround, he was named All-Western North Carolina Coach of the Year.
While leading Cherokee, Briggs also battled a prostate cancer diagnosis. Following the championship season, he was named an honorary member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians after team members unanimously petitioned for the recognition.
Briggs announced his retirement from coaching in 2019 and later returned to Western Carolina as a part-time adjunct instructor.
Briggs is survived by his wife, Lisa Briggs; his daughter, Alex Briggs-Allison, and her husband, Sam Allison; his brother, Randy Briggs, and his wife, Theresa; and their children, Morgan and Matthew. He was preceded in death by his parents, Violet and Corky Briggs, and their beloved son, Cody Kent Briggs.
