A member of the U.S. Golf Association (USGA), Joe Mattis begins his 11th season as an assistant coach with the Gannon women’s golf program in 2023-24.
During his tenure, the Lady Knights have won six Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference team championships (2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023) and qualified for the NCAA Regional Tournament five times (2016, 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023).
A well-known figure on the Erie, Pa., sports scene, Mattis retired from the newspaper industry in 2008. He spent 24 years (1984-2008) as a reporter for the Erie Morning News and Erie Times-News. During his career, Mattis covered Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Football League (NFL), the National Basketball Association (NBA), Erie's minor league baseball teams (Erie Cardinals, Erie Orioles, Erie Sailors, and Erie SeaWolves), the Erie Otters, local college basketball and football, professional auto racing (including NASCAR and Formula 1), and District 10 high school sports.
The Erie native began his sports career as the Mercyhurst College Sports Information Director from 1971-74. His 1973 basketball media guide was judged best among small colleges in the Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey region. He was inducted into the Metropolitan Erie Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in 2009 and the Gannon Athletics Hall of Fame as the 2017 Distinguished Service Award recipient.
As part of his role with the Gannon women's golf team, Mattis has served as the program's historian, compiling and tracking historical data and team records.
Mattis graduated from Cathedral Preparatory School in 1965 and received a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Management from Gannon College (now University) in 1969. He completed Golf Club Fitting and Assembly School at the Maltby Clubmaking Academy in 2009. In the summer of 2016, Mattis received the honor of being chosen as a volunteer worker at the U.S. Open hosted by the Oakmont Country Club in Plum, Pennsylvania.
Mattis has been married to his wife Patti for 54 years. The couple has two children, Mary (husband Mike) and Mike (wife Andrea), and two grandchildren, Kaitlynn and Aubree.
-- Updated July 6, 2023
