How does one fill the Woman’s Basketball 🏀 void until Monday evening? CCHS notes 📝 at Bottom

Thankfully one option was to make the short trek down to Greensboro where the Atlantic Coast Conference is also down to its Final Four.

Down here its #1 vs #4 & #2 vs #3 in the Semi-finals. Two Coaches that I have a great deal of respect for in Coach Walz at Louisville and someone we have followed forever in Mr. Kenny Brooks at Virginia Tech.

Brooks spent a large part of his career guiding the Dukes of James Madison University Women’s Basketball 🏀 team. Coach is someone that we would refer to as One of Us which is the verbiage chosen for our Non-profit Organization, Oneofus.care.

What does the phrase actually mean ? It describes a person that looks at life through positive eyes and isn’t afraid to think about others while still functioning at their job. There’s a Basketball Coach and then there’s a leader of a Basketball program. Those of us that supported JMU knew the day would come where he would move on and that he would succeed at a level that would make the Shenandoah Valley proud.

Brooks stayed around Home longer than he needed to and when he headed down I-81 to Blacksburg most of knew that Hokie success would soon follow. Sadly as I sit here in the Coliseum with my wife today, wearing our Duke Blue knowing that a few weeks ago VT road its inside/out game to perfection in taking the Blue Devils out of the game before it started.

Sometimes its about more than who wins a game in my World 🌎, but I understand that I’m in the minority on that one. I am not going to connect Fancy Gap and Frank Beamer to Kenny Brooks and the Shenandoah Valley but know that he is the Coach in Women’s Basketball from that area that makes people truly proud. Even those of us that have to learn how to say Go Hokies.

Brooks couldn’t pick me out of a lineup but Jeff Burner shares similar thoughts about Kenny and has spent a fair amount of time with Coach over the decades. For validation purposes understand that Coach Jeff Burner is about to be named the John Culp Person of the Year by Oneofus.care.

Burner has been Brooks-like forever, just on a smaller stage. I did ask Jeff to share one truly random story about the Burner and Brooks relationship.

I’m so happy for Kenny. He and I met my sophomore year at JMU. We were in the same reading group for a sociology class for the book “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.”

Thanks Jeff, pretty sure that folks won’t find that one on his Wikipedia page!

VMI to JMU to VT, the common denominator being the amount of Class displayed and the only noticeable change I’ve seen is Coach has more gray in his beard. Keep putting up the W’s and keep doing it in style. Know that the Valley is pulling for you and your latest team.

I want to close out with a Carroll County note as I received word this morning that Jaelyn Hagee currently sits at 980 points and if the Senior nets 20 more points she would become the third member of the Lady Cavaliers to break that barrier this season!

Second note – Louisville is playing defense on Notre Dame like CCHS played last night 🌙.

Don’t worry, Monday night will be here before you know it and maybe this time we won’t have to stand in a downpour to get inside the Gym.