John Brannon was added to the Western Carolina volleyball coaching staff in July, 2011. The former Butler High School head coach spent the spring of 2010 as a volunteer coach at Winthrop University, bringing over nine years of coaching experience at both the prep and juniors levels to WCU.
"We feel very fortunate to have Coach Brannon as a new member of our organization," said Glover. "We feel his experience in the North Carolina volleyball community will prove to be a tremendous asset in helping bring Catamount volleyball to the next level."
Moving to North Carolina in 2004, Brannon has spent the past six years coaching high school volleyball at Butler High in Matthews, N.C., just outside of Charlotte. He took over as the varsity head coach in 2008, guiding the Bulldogs to an Elite 8 appearance in the Western Region Semifinals of the 4-A North Carolina State playoffs. Brannon guided Butler to a 20-6 overall record in his first season.
In addition to coaching at Butler, Brannon also coached both 16 and 17-and-under squads with the Carolina Union Volleyball Club (CUVC), taking over as the club's On-Court Director in October of 2009. Each of the past two years, Brannon has guided his 17's team to the USA Junior Nationals.
Brannon has also spent the past three years working within the Carolina Region's High Performance (HP) program. This summer he will serve as an assistant coach for the region's select team at the USA High Performance Nationals.
Last spring, Brannon worked with the Winthrop coaching staff, helping with both office and on-court duties.
A native of Madera, Calif., Brannon was a three-time all-conference selection in volleyball at Madera High, garnering Las Vegas Invitational All-tournament team accolades in 2000. He went on to play two years of football at Willamette University in Salem, Ore., before receiving his bachelor's degree in mathematics from California State University in Fresno in 2004. Brannon later earned his Master's degree in Philosophy from Southern Evangelical Seminary in Charlotte.
Brannon got his start in coaching in 2003 as an assistant volleyball coach at Madera High, coaching two seasons of boy's volleyball, basketball and football while continuing to compete in outdoor grass volleyball tournaments.
Brannon is married to the former Shelby Carl of Glendale, Ariz.
