Kent Briggs, western North Carolina football legend, dies at 68
By Deanna Sipe & Daegiona Wilson
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CULLOWHEE, N.C. (WLOS) — Local western North Carolina football legend, Kent Briggs, has passed away at the age of 68 on Friday, June 21.
Briggs was well-known at WCU as a former quarterback, assistant coach, and head coach.
A North Carolina native, Briggs grew up in Asheville where he attended A.C. Reynolds High School and played football.
Staying close to home, Briggs attended college at Western Carolina University (WCU) where he played from 1976 to 1979.
According to a news release, Briggs began as a redshirt freshman, throwing 353 yards and four touchdowns while completing 25 of 40 passes. After years of serving as backup to All-Southern Conference quarterback Mike Pusey, Briggs appeared in nine games as a senior, completing 24 of 41 passes for 270 yards and a touchdown.
During his time at Western, Briggs had some notable accomplishments, including being part of the Catamount football teams that posted four consecutive winning seasons, which marked the program’s first and longest stretch until the 1992 to 1995 and 2022 to 2025 seasons.
Following his career in playing football at Western, Briggs coached under his mentor Bob Waters.
Briggs coached under Waters for nine seasons from 1980 to 1988. In 1982, after two years of being a graduate assistant, Briggs was given his first full-time coaching position.
According to a news release, Briggs was part of the Catamounts’ school-record 10-win season and memorable run to the 1983 NCAA Division I-AA National Championship Game.
Briggs soon made his way to other universities, including North Carolina State and the University of Connecticut.
Returning to his alma mater in 2002, Briggs became the 11th all-time head coach.
While serving as head coach for WCU, Briggs also served as an assistant coach in football and track at Smoky Mountain High School from 2010 to 2012.
As previously reported, Briggs survived head and neck cancer during his tenure at WCU.
After his tenure at WCU, Briggs then began coaching Cherokee High School in 2014.
Briggs led Cherokee High School to the 2017 North Carolina state football championship, the first in school history. That performance earned Briggs All-Western North Carolina Coach of the Year.
While leading Cherokee to the championship, Briggs was once again faced with a battle of cancer, this time with prostate cancer.
During the 2017 season with Cherokee High School, Briggs started every morning receiving treatment.
“I’m going through treatments and I’m still ticking. Coaching takes so much focus and effort that it helps to work on that and not have time to worry about other things,” Briggs previously told News 13 in 2017.
Following the championship win, Briggs was named an honorary member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians after team members unanimously petitioned for the recognition.
In 2019, Briggs announced his retirement with the following statement:
“After deep reflection about family, football, and life, I have decided to retire. There are many factors I considered before making this decision: personal, professional, medical, and what is in the best interest of Cherokee. I am doing ok after my second battle with stage four cancers, but I want to experience life from a different perspective other than on the sidelines. It is a difficult decision for me to make, but I believe in my heart that the timing is right for a new head coach to take over Cherokee football and continue to develop the young talent that we have here. I am confident that many other championships are on the horizon,” Briggs said.
As previously reported, Briggs finished his coaching career at Cherokee High School with a 37-29 overall record at Cherokee, including a 14-1 record during the 2017 championship season.
According to the release, Briggs once again returned to his alma mater, working as a part-time adjunct instructor.
The release states that Briggs is survived by 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.
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