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John McPherson

Coach

john.mcpherson@austinisd.org

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"Coach Mac" has been the Head Coach at Anderson HS since 2015. A Fort Worth native, he graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 1978 in Education. He began his coaching career in Longview, TX. Returning to Austin in 1979, he taught and coached at Anderson for one year before moving to Pearce Middle School in 1980 to coach Football, Basketball & Track for 32 years. Upon retiring, he was recognized as the "winningest" M.S. Football coach in A.I.S.D. history in December 2011. His teams posted 11 undefeated seasons along with 11 one-loss seasons. In 2014, he came out of his retirement to coach Golf at LBJ/LASA and was then recruited to coach Golf at Anderson HS. In May 2022, he was recognized by A.I.S.D. and by Anderson HS as the male "Coach of the Year." In July 2022, Coach Mac was named "5A/6A Coach of the Year" by The Texas Girls Golf Coaches Association.

 

Under Coach Mac's direction, the Trojans have placed in:

  • UIL District in '17, '18, '19, '21, '22, '23

  • UIL Regional in '17, '18, '19, '21, '22 '23

  • U.I.L. State 2021

    • Boys 5th 

    • Girls 5th

    • STATE Individual Silver: Trevor Mierl

  • U.I.L. State 2022

    • Boys - 5A STATE CHAMPS

    • Girls  - 5A STATE CHAMPS

    • STATE Individual Champion: Farah O'Keefe & Keaton Vo

 

He is married to the former Carole Crawford, LASA HS Lead Counselor, and has two children; daughter Amy, a Texas Tech graduate, and son Grady, a Texas A&M graduate. His hobbies include traveling, golf, watching football, trivia, music (he was in a band-The Jr Beatles), being an Austin Tour Guide, and spending time with family & friends.

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Melissa Willamson

Coach

melissa.willamson@austinisd.org

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"Coach Melissa" has been the Girls' Head Coach since 2022. Assistant Golf Coach at Anderson HS from 2016-2022. She graduated from Texas Wesleyan University in 1995 with a B.S. in Political Science. Earned a MEd in Educational Leadership from Concordia University Texas in 2023. She started her teaching in Austin at St. Theresa's Catholic School in 2007, then moved to Austin I.S.D./ Murchison MS in 2016. In 2021 she was assigned to Anderson High School.

 

Coach Melissa also sponsors the Murchison Golf Club, which started in 2017. She was recognized by A.I.S.D. and featured on K.X.A.N. for establishing and hosting the first-ever A.I.S.D. Middle School Golf Tournament in 2018. U.I.L. does not recognize M.S. Golf; therefore, she spearheaded M.S. Golf Clubs within the district and annually hosted tournament events for students across the district for comradery and building golf skills. District Middle School Clubs have expanded to Goryzski MS and O'Henry MS.  

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Coach Melissa is married with two children, both attending Southwestern University in Georgetown, TX. Her hobbies include family, genealogy, philanthropy, travel, and live music.

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Mike Stratton

Assistant Coach

michael.stratton@austinisd.org

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"Coach Strat" has been an Assistant Golf Coach at Anderson High School since 2023. He was born and raised in Wood River, Illinois. He graduated from Illinois State University in 2013 with a B.S. in Secondary Mathematics Education and Chemistry. 

 

Coach Stratton moved to Austin with his wife Nichole and their tiny (and very spoiled) Yorkie Beau in 2018. He has been an Assistant Boy’s Basketball Coach since 2019 and served as an Assistant Baseball Coach from 2021-2023. 

 

His hobbies include rooting for the St. Louis Cardinals and Blues, playing golf, and spending time with his family.

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