"IT'S JUST TIME": Central's Roberts ready to move on after 40 years of coaching

Feb. 29—It's something I've asked quite a few people in the past few weeks.

What's your favorite Coach Rob story?

That question almost always drew the same enthusiastic response.

"Oh gosh, there are so many," Madison Central principal Brandon Fritz said. "I could go on for days."

With a smile on their face and joy in their voice, each person told me ludicrously wonderful tales about Kenny Roberts.

"We were playing Lexington Catholic and I got fouled really hard going to the basket," Central assistant coach Daniel Parke said. "Coach Rob says, 'Daniel. Pick up your kidney and hit these free throws.'"

"It was a junior varsity game at Montgomery County and the officials said the ball was out of bounds off the blue team," Madison Central head coach Allen Feldhaus said. "So, Coach Rob says, 'Did anyone on the blue team touch that ball? If you did, raise your hand.' No one raised their hand. So, he said, 'Well. There you go!' Even the refs started cracking up."

"(Earlier this year) at Christian County, we had missed our first four free throws," Central assistant coach Jared Pyatt said. "So, Luke Asher steps to the line and Coach Rob says, 'Close your eyes this time. Maybe that will help."

"I was coaching a freshman game at Dunbar and we weren't playing well," Fritz said. "So, I kicked a plastic trash can at halftime. After the varsity game, we are getting ready to load the bus and this police officer comes over to me and says, 'Sir, we got a report that you did some damage to the locker room.' He said, 'Did you kick that trash can?' I was stuttering and just said, 'Yes sir.' I didn't know what was going to happen. Then, I looked to my right and Coach Rob was over there laughing. He had set me up."

I heard plenty of other funny stories.

Including Coach Rob jokingly telling a struggling free throw shooter to "fake a heart attack."

"He's got that dry sense of humor," Fritz said. "He will say something, and if you don't know, you might think he is being mean. But, he is just being funny. His one-liners are the best."

In his four decades as an assistant coach, Madison Central has won more than 30 district tournament titles, claimed four 11th Region championships (1999, 2006, 2013 and 2021) and captured the program's first-ever KHSAA Sweet 16 title (2013).

The victories, trophies and the championships, though, aren't the most important part of the story.

Just ask anyone who knows Coach Rob.

"He has always loved Madison Central," Fritz said. "He has been dedicated to our kids and our program. He is a special part of our program and our school — and always will be."

"He is a great person. He has a good heart," said classmate Mark Harrison, who is also a KHSAA referee. "He was raised right."

Coach Rob's legacy will live on.

Even if he won't be on the bench anymore.

The 2023-2024 season will his 40th — and final — as a coach.

"I always said when I started here that I didn't want to leave mad about anything — and I'm not," Roberts said. "It's just time for me to move on. I've got four kids and four grandkids. It's just time."

It's been a remarkable journey.

Roberts was part of Madison Central's district title team as a senior (1978) and returned to the school as an assistant during the 1983-84 season.

Feldhaus took over the program a decade later (1993-94) and the coaches immediately clicked.

"I went up and knocked on his classroom door and we probably talked for the whole class period," Feldhaus said of his first meeting with Roberts.

And that relationship has only grown stronger over the years.

"He's not only my assistant coach, he is my best friend too," Feldhaus said. "Our kids grew up together, in this gym. We have a good time. That's what I will probably miss more than anything."

The Indians advanced to the state tournament in 1987, but Roberts was excited about the passion, professionalism and purpose Feldhaus brought to the program.

"We had to build it from the ground up, because it was all in disarray," Roberts said. "That was a bad time."

There were lots of good times to come.

The Indians won 11th Region titles in 1999 and 2006.

In 2013, Central celebrated a state title on the court at Rupp Arena.

"After they missed the last shot, all of us coaches huddled together and (Coach Rob) kept saying, 'We just won the [****ing] state championship! We just won the [****ing] state championship!'" Feldhaus said.

Roberts guided the Indians on the road to that championship.

Literally.

He started driving a bus during his tenure as Madison Central's softball coach and is still behind the wheel for almost every trip — including a 472-mile trek to Christian County last month.

"The first time I drove, I didn't even know how to change gears," Roberts said.

In the past 40 years, the Indians — with Roberts driving — have played a game in 15 of the KHSAA's 16 Regions (3rd Region).

"We've been down a lot of roads," Roberts said.

And those moments on the road are some of the most memorable for the coaching staff.

"We have fun on the bus," Feldhaus said. "I sit right up front with him and we talk the whole way."

For four decades, Roberts has quietly and dependably played many roles on the Central coach staff.

The most impactful, though, is as a mentor.

With a steady hand, he has been a positive influences for many generations of young men and women.

"The ones who stayed with us for four years, most of them grew up to be outstanding people," Roberts said.

Now, it is time for Roberts to focus more of his attention on his own family.

"We understand," Feldhaus said of Roberts' decision to step away. "He loves those grandkids and they are close enough that he can go see them."

The end is near.

And Roberts knows that.

The final story, however, hasn't yet been told.

"I'm going to miss it. I hope I can find something to fill the void. If I want to come to a game, I'll come to a game," Roberts said.

"We will leave your seat open for you," Pyatt said.

"I'm not sitting on the bench," Roberts said with a laugh.