Kenneth Ray Jolly died Sunday at White County Community Hospital in Sparta, Tenn. He was 72.
The father of University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s basketball coach Brent Jolly and former Lady Mocs assistant Kellie Harper was a longtime basketball coach at White County High School, where Brent and Kellie starred. She was inducted into the Sparta school’s hall of fame Friday and has her plaque right next to her father’s.
UTC coach John Shulman and assistants DeAntoine Beasley and Ricky Cabrera, who like Brent played at Tennessee Tech, planned to drive up for a visitation after practice Tuesday.
Shulman said it’s likely that Brent will be on the sideline Thursday night when the Mocs host Davidson.
“Mr. Jolly is a legend up there,” Shulman said. “His health wasn’t good, but I think it caught them off guard.