Branson has its man, and a Springfield coaching tree continues to extend its branches.
The Branson School District Board of Directors met Thursday and approved the hiring of Kickapoo assistant coach Mike Linehan to be the next Pirates boys basketball coach.
Linehan has previously been a head coach at Forsyth and Dadeville. In the 2010-2011 season, Linehan’s Dadeville squad went 30-2 and lost the Class 1 state championship game to Scott County Central. Linehan previously served on the coaching staff at Kickapoo, which made back-to-back trips to the Class 5 Show-Me Showdown (state playoff semifinals).
Linehan is a graduate of Evangel University, where he spent some time learning the trade of coaching under Hall-of-Famer Steve Jenkins.