TIME TO RETIRE

 Gerald Foley is hanging it after 41 years with the Corbin Independent School system. Foley, know as “Coach” by many is retiring at the end of the current school year. He is the current Athletic Director and has coached both boys and girls basketball as well as baseball.

“I’ve been Athletic Director for the last 15 years,” he said. “I turned 68 this year and I felt it was time to step down and let someone with more energy take over. It just got to be more than I could do physically to keep up with everything and it was time to go.”

“The thing I will miss the most is being around our coaches and students-athletes and the school administration and coaches from the other schools,” said Foley. “I have always had good rapport with other athletic directors and coaches from the other schools. I’ll miss the meetings and seeing them at games.”

“One of the things I will always remember is the relationship I have had with the coaches, even when I was an assistant coach and with our players,” he said. “Those friendships that you develop over the years will always be there. You can look back and see some of the players I coached are involved now in athletics.”

“I will remember some of the big years I had and the chances to go to state in girls’ basketball,” Foley said. “I also got to coach a girl that was All-American at Eastern (Jaree Goodin) and that’s something I will always cherish.”

One of the things he will remember was his first year coaching at Corbin. “The year before I coached the boys won six games, we won 19 games and the district championship my first year,” said Foley. “Corbin had not won a district championship since 1966 then we won it in 1976. We them being my first team I will always remember that group.”

Foley has had a positive impact with all the schools in the 13^th region. “I got to serve as the secretary of the SEKC for several years and it was always enjoyable to get together with the other coaches, principals and Athletic Directors at the banquets for the athletes,” he said. “I actually started being associated with the SEKC in 1964 when I was at Barbourville.”

“Some of my friendships have been for many, many years,” said Foley. “I am probably the only one of the original group still hanging around.”

Foley, who was inducted into the Redhound Varsity Club’ Hall of Fame in 2003, began his coaching career in 1975 with the boys’ basketball team. His teams won the 50^th District title in ’76, ’78, ’79. He was named the SEKC Coach of the Year in 1976. He finished his career with a 78-54 record.

His girls’ team won the 50^th District four times, (’87, ’88, ’89, ’91). He took two of those teams to the 13^th Region championship games in 1988 and 1989. In his eight years with the Lady Redhounds seven teams went to the regional tournament. He was SEKC Coach of the Year ’86, ’87, and ’88. His record with the Lady Redhounds was 166-70, giving him a basketball career mark of 244-124 in 13 years on the bench.

Foley will leave Corbin with 16 varsity sports. “The athletic program has continued to grow and one of the things I am proud of is that we have seen an increase in the number of female athletes. We have almost as many female athletes as we do males and I think that has been a positive thing during my time as Athletic Director,” he said.

Foley said he plans to stay busy in his retirement. “I don’t want to just go home and sit down. I want to play a lot of golf and be with my granddaughter and do some things with her and take at least one day of the month and get some of that honey-do list done.”

“I am looking forward to just coming to the games and being a Redhound fan,” said Foley. “I just will not have to worry about everything being in place and going the way they are suppose to go.”

As Bill Crook would say, Once a Redhound, always a Redhound and Foley has demonstrated for 40+ plus years that he is a Redhound.