Kenny Brooks' name has been cemented in the history books after Virginia Tech shut down Louisville 75-67 in the ACC Championship yesterday.
With the victory, Brooks became the first Black women's basketball head coach in conference history to win the tournament. The moment was not lost on him after the game.
“This honor, I didn't know it until they told me after the game. If you'd asked me about five, 10 years ago, I wouldn't have embraced it as much. Honestly, being a Black head coach in a women's sport, it is tough. It really is,” Brooks said, noting that he is the only Black male head coach at the Power 5 level. “I think that there are coaches out there that are definitely worthy of an opportunity.
“So for me, I've embraced that role. I've embraced it when people come up to me, other coaches, when they text me, when they DM me.”
Charlene Curtis was the first Black women's basketball head coach in the ACC. She coached at Wake Forest from 1997 to 2004 and died of cancer last summer.
Brooks' achievement was celebrated by Elizabeth Kitley, who hasn't decided whether she will return to the team next season. She could play for Brooks and Virginia Tech in the 2023-24 campaign since she has an extra year of eligibility following the apex of the pandemic.
However, she was all smiles after setting out to win the ACC with her head coach.
“I just can't say enough about Coach Brooks and what he's done for this program and for me personally,” said Kitley, a two-time ACC player of the year. “It's just really awesome for everything that we talked about to happen. One of our biggest goals, we did it together and I'm just really proud and happy.”
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