| Branch Bocock | |
| Birth Date: | 10 March 1884 |
| Birth Place: | Shenandoah, Virginia, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Blackstone, Virginia, U.S. |
| Player Sport1: | Football |
| Player Years2: | 1903–1906 |
| Player Team2: | Georgetown |
| Player Positions: | Quarterback |
| Coach Sport1: | Football |
| Coach Years2: | 1908 |
| Coach Team2: | Georgia |
| Coach Years3: | 1909–1910 |
| Coach Team3: | VPI |
| Coach Years4: | 1911 |
| Coach Team4: | North Carolina |
| Coach Years5: | 1912–1915 |
| Coach Team5: | VPI |
| Coach Years6: | 1920–1921 |
| Coach Team6: | LSU |
| Coach Years7: | 1925–1926 |
| Coach Team7: | South Carolina |
| Coach Years8: | 1928–1930 |
| Coach Team8: | William & Mary |
| Coach Years9: | 1936–1938 |
| Coach Team9: | William & Mary |
| Coach Sport10: | Basketball |
| Coach Years11: | 1909–1911 |
| Coach Team11: | VPI |
| Coach Years12: | 1913–1915 |
| Coach Team12: | VPI |
| Coach Years13: | 1920–1921 |
| Coach Team13: | LSU |
| Coach Years14: | 1924–1927 |
| Coach Team14: | South Carolina |
| Coach Sport15: | Baseball |
| Coach Years16: | 1910–1911 |
| Coach Team16: | VPI |
| Coach Years17: | 1914 |
| Coach Team17: | VPI |
| Coach Years18: | 1922–1923 |
| Coach Team18: | LSU |
| Coach Years19: | 1925–1927 |
| Coach Team19: | South Carolina |
| Admin Years1: | 1909 |
| Admin Team1: | VPI |
| Admin Years2: | 1925–1926 |
| Admin Team2: | South Carolina |
| Overall Record: | 98–55–9 (football) 109–33 (basketball) 70–54–4 (baseball) |
| Championships: | Football 2 Virginia Conference (1929–1930) Basketball 1 SoCon regular season (1927) |
James Branch Bocock (March 10, 1884 – May 25, 1946) was an American football, basketball, and baseball coach.[1] He served as the head football coach at the University of Georgia (1908), Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute (VPI)—now known as Virginia Tech (1909–1910, 1912–1915), the University of North Carolina (1911), Louisiana State University (1920–1921),[2] the University of South Carolina (1925–1926), and The College of William & Mary (1928–1930, 1936–1938), compiling a career college football record of 98–55–9. Bocock was also the head basketball coach at VPI (1909–1911, 1913–1915), LSU (1920–1921),[3] and South Carolina (1924–1927), tallying a career college basketball mark of 109–33, and the head baseball coach at VPI (1910–1911, 1914), LSU (1922–1923), and South Carolina (1925–1927), amassing a career college baseball record of 70–54–2.
Bocock was a quarterback for the Georgetown Hoyas.[4]
Although official records give Bocock credit only for coaching the Georgia Bulldogs football team in 1908, he also coached the last three games of Georgia's 1907 season. In 1907, Georgia head football coach Bull Whitney was caught in a controversy over the revelation that there were at least four paid professionals on the Georgia and Georgia Tech teams during the game played that year. As a result, Georgia removed all known ringers from its team and Whitney was forced to resign, handing the coaching duties over to Bocock for the last three games. Georgia was 2–1 in those three games.
At VPI, Bocock was the team's first true professional coach and the first head football coach to receive a full-time salary.[5]
Bocock died at the age of 62 on May 25, 1946, at his home in Blackstone, Virginia.[6]