App State Announces New Head Women’s Golf Coach – The Appalachian

On Thursday, it was announced that Chan Metts has been named the new head coach of the App State women’s golf team.

Prior to App State, he was the head men’s and women’s golf coach at Charleston Southern. As head coach of the Charleston Southern women’s team, he led the team to an NCAA regional berth and a conference title in 2024, the team’s first appearance in 14 years.

“Winning a conference championship is never easy, and this shows he is more than capable of taking the program to new heights,” said Georgia Southern head coach and App State graduate Mimi Burke.

Metts was also named the 2024 Big South Women’s Golf Conference Coach of the Year.

“It’s an honor to be here,” Metts said during a news conference Thursday where athletic director Doug Gillin introduced him to App State.

The ceremony was attended by other App State Athletics head coaches and Phillip Byers from the board of directors.

“It’s a big deal when we hire a head coach at Appalachian State,” Gillin said. “The head coaches here are the backbone of our varsity athletic department.”

Before starting his coaching career, Metts worked in the Department of Juvenile Justice for seven years in his home state of Georgia. Metts said what he learned in that field helped him in his coaching career.

“For me, there are a few reasons I want to be a coach,” Metts said. “I honestly wake up every day and think I have the best job in the world. There’s nothing I’d rather do than work with young people on the golf course.”

Metts also shared that his father was a football coach, and he grew up appreciating the process of getting better and putting in the work to get ready for the season. Metts arrived at App State on Monday, and the women’s golf team had its first practice on Wednesday. He said it makes practice more difficult.

“I want all my players to be able to look at me in five, 10, 20 years and say, ‘I was a better player because I played for you, but more importantly, I’m a better person because I played for you,’” Metts said.

The excitement in the room was palpable, and one golfer became emotional as Metts spoke about his excitement about working with the team.

Team Metts’ goals for this year include winning the women’s grade point average award and a Sun Belt title.

Team Metts’ goals this year include winning women’s team honors, becoming the “hardest working team” in the conference and winning a Sun Belt title.

The first women’s golf match will be Monday at Clemson.

In moving from the coast to the mountains, Metts said it had “always been a dream” for him and his wife, Whitney, to live in the area and that they were “ready to make it a permanent home.”