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Pat Kelsey blew a whistle, and they started chopping their feet — their eyes locked on his every move.
On this rainy Tuesday inside the Swain Student Activities Center, the Louisville basketball coach called the shots like a conductor who had just downed a six-pack of Red Bull before stepping to the podium at Carnegie Hall.
Jab step to the left, then right — punctuate these with yells. Spin to face the other side of the gym, now back around. Jump up in the air to contest a shot. Hit the deck like you’re taking a charge. Clap it up.
“That was the most important thing in the history of my career,” Kelsey said afterward. “Because it was the next thing I did — and because those kids deserve that.”
Those kids were not Kelsey’s Cardinals. They were participants in the Connor Kids Academy — a yearlong enrichment program for under-resourced, fifth- to seventh-grade boys that partners with Division I basketball programs to help get its message across.
This is Louisville’s third year working with Connor Kids Academy, which first came to campus when Kenny Payne was at the helm in 2023. The Dayton-based program, a mashup of Connor Group Kids & Community Partners and ProCamps, also collaborates with its hometown Flyers in addition to Cincinnati and Ohio State.
Here’s how it works: Boys sign up (at no cost) toward the end of fourth grade. They commit to three in-person events a year like this three-day camp at U of L; during which they sharpen their skills on the court and learn about building healthy habits both physically and mentally off it. Tuesday’s lessons included controlling your attitude and identifying role models in the community.
In between the events, participants must engage at least three times a week with an app that reinforces the program’s curriculum and rewards them for accomplishing goals. They range from getting a good night’s sleep to doing jumping jacks and telling someone, “Thank you.” Crossing one off the list earns points that can be redeemed for prizes.
Connor Kids Academy currently has 287 participants across its four locations. The 30 boys who are new to the Louisville cohort come from 17 different elementary schools.
Program director Alex Klein told The Courier Journal it has an 86% annual retention rate — and that 58% of participants check in on the app more than the minimum requirement.
“The kids clearly have a stronger sense of self and self-confidence — that they can surmount the challenges that they’re going to be up against and that they are up against as fifth-, sixth- and seventh-grade boys in this world,” Klein said.
“It becomes this thing that’s much bigger than basketball, but it’s very much rooted in, ‘Hey, come play basketball.'”
Kelsey had no idea Louisville had hosted Connor Kids Academy before he arrived in spring 2024. But he said it was a no-brainer to keep the partnership going after meeting the billionaire who founded it, Larry Connor.
“He’s so passionate about bettering the world around him,” the coach said. “He’s so passionate about pouring into disadvantaged youth — giving them hope, giving them a roadmap, giving them world-class mentorship.
“He puts his money where his mouth is, but it’s more than just money. It’s the passion that he has for it.”
Kelsey said he wouldn’t have done Connor justice had he not brought the energy to Tuesday’s session. It was an homage to the people who helped steer him in the right direction growing up: his parents, grandparents and coaches.
The drill he had the boys do before sitting them down for a pep talk? You could trace some of it back to his very first youth football coach, Bill Doran Sr. The late Skip Prosser’s motto, “Never delay gratitude,” was brought up a time or two.
“Coaches are teachers,” he said. “The best teachers are coaches, too.”
Kelsey also told the Connor Kids Academy participants about Louisville’s culture of “25 Strong.” It’s not just an act; every member of the 2025-26 roster is spending time with the boys while they’re on campus.
In the fall, the group will visit the Planet Fitness Kueber Center for a behind-the-scenes look at a preseason practice. This past spring, staffer Peyton Siva and a few players accompanied them to the Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory.
“(Kelsey) and his team are huge supporters of what we do,” Klein said. “They show it not in what they say but in what they do.”
Tuesday afternoon started with Ryan Conwell refereeing games in the gym and J’Vonne Hadley sitting in on a lesson in the classroom. When Kelsey was on his way out, Kasean Pryor and Khani Rooths were on their way in.
“It’s a blessing, to be able to have the opportunity to give back, being somebody that the kids look up to,” Conwell said.
“It means a lot, when you impact the youth,” Hadley added, “because I know that that’s what I would have wanted when I was younger.”
Reach Louisville men’s basketball reporter Brooks Holton at bholton@gannett.com and follow him on X at @brooksHolton.
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