CHARLOTTSVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Two locals are among 24 recognized by the National Federation of High Schools as 2024-25 National Coaches of the Year.
The NFHS Coaches Association has bestowed the honor on Western Albemarle High School Boys Swimming & Diving Coach Dan Bledsoe and Charlottesville High School Boys Tennis Coach John Neal.
One other coach from Virginia is recognized in Henrico County in Douglass S. Freeman High School Girls Tennis Coach Larry Parpart.
According to a release, “The NFHS, which has been recognizing coaches through an awards program since 1982, honors coaches in the top 10 girls sports and top 10 boys sports (by participation numbers), and in two “other” sports – one for boys and one for girls – that are not included in the top 10 listings.”
The NFHS receives nominations from its member state associations, which in Virginia is the Virginia High School League in Charlottesville.
“The state association then contacts the potential state award recipients to complete a coach profile form that requests information regarding the coach’s record, membership in and affiliation with coaching and other professional organizations, involvement with other school and community activities and programs, and coaching philosophy,” said the NFHS release.
Bledsoe is in his 23rd year as a high school coach in Virginia, including 16 years at Western Albemarle High School and seven at Waynesboro High School.
At Western Albemarle the past 16 years, Bledsoe, who is also now the school’s athletic director, has led his boys teams to nine Virginia High School League (VHSL) state championships (19 including 10 VHSL girls state titles), including the past eight consecutive, and produced 29 individual state champions, along with 15 relay state titles.
He has coached seven boys to 18 NISCA All-American honors and guided 10 All-American relay teams.
“Giving back is central to our program,” Bledsoe said, according to the NFHS release. “Athletes volunteer with Special Olympics, community events and park projects, learning the importance of service, sacrifice and contributing to the greater good. By connecting these experiences to broader life contexts, we equip athletes to navigate the demands of adulthood with confidence, integrity and resilience.”
Neal has coached Charlottesville High School’s boys tennis for the past seven years, building it into a competitive power.
After recording a 27-16 mark in his first four years, Neal has led Charlottesville to a 39-5 record and back-to-back Virginia High School League state championships the past two years. The first state title in 2023-24 was the school’s first championship in 37 years.
Neal was named the Central Virginia Boys Tennis Coach of the Year in 2025 and now oversees and leads both the boys and girls tennis programs.
