Former Division I coach and student-athlete, Winston Neal joins Columbia State Community College’s athletic department as the head coach for the men’s basketball team.
“I am excited to take on the responsibilities as head coach of the Chargers,” Neal said. “Thanks to my experience as both a former student-athlete and Division I coach, I feel as though I could not be more prepared to take on this position.”
Neal spent nine years as the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the men’s basketball program at Jacksonville University in Florida, where he recruited key players who led the team to regular conference titles in 2009 and 2010, as well as three consecutive postseason berths.
Prior to his time at Jacksonville, Neal coached at the University of Southern California and Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California.
While at Georgia Institute of Technology, Neal was a four-year letter winner in basketball at from 1999-2002, was named team co-captain for his senior season in 2002 and earned Georgia Tech basketball’s Iron Athlete Award in 1999, 2000 and 2001. He was also an Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Honor Roll selection in 2000 and 2001 and capped his four-year career by earning the Georgia Tech’s Mr. Hustle Award.
Having earned a reputation as a hard-working student-athlete himself, Neal said he believes a coach’s highest priority should be the success of their student-athletes on the court, in the classroom, and in the game of life, especially after they obtain their degrees.
“I have been blessed with the opportunity to play for and learn from successful head coaches, which has prepared me to continue to build on the Charger’s legacy of developing successful student-athletes,” Neal said.
The Greenville, Georgia native earned his Bachelor of Science degree in management from Georgia Tech and a Master’s of Business Administration from Loyola Marymount. He currently resides in Brentwood with his wife Bridget and daughter Sophia.
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