Coaching has been a nonstop yearly vocation for Johnny Colbreath at Edisto High School.

While serving as the Cougars’ defensive coordinator the past four years, the South Carolina State graduate has coached girls’ track the last two years. In between coaching those sports, Colbreath served last year as the junior varsity boys’ and girls’ basketball coach.

Colbreath can now add another head coaching position to his job title as he was promoted to varsity girls’ basketball coach.

This is the second head coaching job for Colbreath, who served in the same capacity at Branchville during the 2004-05 season. He inherits a Lady Cougars team which missed the playoffs for the second straight year, but returns a young and hungry squad.

“We have to improve fundamentally,” he said. “Basic fundamentals and maturity.”

Colbreath also plans to stress off-season weight training in order to get his players stronger for the rigors of Region 5-AA.

“I’m looking forward to a real good basketball season,” he said. “It’s going to take a lot of hard work. We’re going to have our ups and downs. But they can be a very competitive team.”

An advantage Colbreath enjoys is the fact he coaches the majority of the team in track, including state long jump champion Kayla Greene. He expects the rising senior to take a more active leadership role on the team.

In other Edisto coaching news, former Hunter-Kinard-Tyler head coach Barry Charley is the new quarterbacks coach. Charley spent seven seasons with the Trojans before he was replaced by former SCSU standout Jermaine Derricott.

Colbreath’s hiring leaves local girls’ basketball coaching vacancies at Hunter-Kinard-Tyler and Bamberg-Ehrhardt. Orangeburg-Wilkinson is also in the market for a new coach after Orangeburg Consolidated District Five declined to renew Lyman Foster’s contract which expires Aug. 30.

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