Charlotte Catholic High School, one of North Carolina's winningest prep programs across several decades, has a new head coach with deep collegiate coaching experience.
The school announced Monday that it had hired Keith Emery away from Biff Poggi's Charlotte 49ers staff, where Emery served as the Football Bowls Subdivision program's director of high school relations.
Emery also had been an coaching analyst in the program and previously had a decorated collegiate head coaching run at NCAA Division III program Western New England University.
Among Emery's other coaching stints are a stop at Johns Hopkins University, as well as Charlotte-area powerhouse programs Providence Day School and Myers Park.
Poggi took to social media to praise Charlotte Catholic's new hire.
"Charlotte Catholic got a star in Coach Emery, " Poggi, in part, posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. "Players, parents and fans will love and respect him."
Charlotte Catholic got a star in Coach Emery. Players, parents and fans will love and respect him. He really cares about kids and he has very high standards. Most importantly he is a really great man !! https://t.co/T8vVeny9E6
— Biff poggi (@BiffPoggi) June 17, 2024
“Coach Emery has an impressive record of competitive success at the high school and college levels," Charlotte Catholic Principal Kurt Telford said in a statement, "and I am confident that through his leadership Charlotte Catholic will continue a tradition of success. His commitment to motivating student-athletes and integrating a football program that aligns with the values of CCHS will allow him to build on the tremendous legacy of Cougar football.”
Emery will be just the fourth head coach in 50 years at Charlotte Catholic, which has amassed double-digit state championships in its North Carolina division.