WALLAND, Tenn. — For the kids at Walland Elementary, Coach Isaac "Ikey" Russell was a mentor and second grandfather. The kids described him as "the heart of the team," someone who always had their back.
"He did have a great passion for the game, but even more than that he had a passion for these kids," said head coach Tarah Green. "He was a really, really made a difference in these boys lives."
During the 2018-2019 season, the Walland basketball team lost just one game. In the Blount County tournament, they placed fourth.
"[Coach Ikey] said that we would win the next year, this year," Ethan Ownby, 11, said. "We promised him that we would and we didn't let him down."
In June 2019, Coach Ikey Russell passed away at just 64 years old. The boys said they were heartbroken.
"It was very hard losing him, very hard on all of us," 11-year-old Colton Beans said. "You could feel his spirit when you walked into this building."
The Walland Elementary School basketball team pushed on to honor Coach Ikey's wishes. They dedicated their season to him.
"We just remembered whatever he taught us and we said we were going to win it for him," 10-year-old Brody Pauman said. "He would guide us when we felt bad. He would bring us back up when we felt down."
For the first time, the boys were successful. They won the Blount County championship, which was renamed the "Ikey Russell Memorial Tournament."
"It was just great. It was fabulous just to win for him," Pauman said. "It was like he was still right there."
Ikey Russell's grandson, 12-year-old Rhett Hall, was on the winning team.
"He was a good coach and he was my pawpaw," Hall said. "He would have been really proud of us this year."
Coach Tarah Green knows that's true.
"He would’ve been loud and proud," Green said. "He would have just said 'Good job boys, good job' and tell them to keep going because they have bright futures ahead."