Adam: Through the tears, Kerr appreciates every minute during state tournament run

NORMAL, Ill. — When asked during Saturday’s post-match press conference how many times Southeastern volleyball coach Tim Kerr had cried, senior Taylor Wagner said, “Too many to count.”

“Counting here? Probably 10 at least,” said Tim’s daughter, Ani.

Tim is known for getting choked up about just about anything, ranging from college signings, athletic banquets or a good grilled cheese sandwich. 

“Any time I get the microphone. I’m going to spend half the time in silence trying not to cry,” Tim said. “The other half is actually trying to say something through the tears that makes sense.”

After dropping off his team at the steps to Redbird Arena for Saturday’s Illinois High School Association Class 1A state volleyball championship game, Tim parked the school bus and sat inside by himself for a couple of minutes.

“Hopefully no one was watching,” he said with bleary red eyes and tears dribbling down his cheeks. “Just a whole gamut of emotions came through. You never thought you’d be in a state championship game, and you’re happy. Then there’s some sadness because you know in a matter of a few hours, this season’s gonna be over one way or the other and your group is never going to be together again.”

Tim paused, took a deep breath and … well, you know.

“I was just reminiscing about the season and things here and there,” he said. “Good times.”

Most of his times with the Southeastern volleyball team have been good.

His teams have won 630 games during 25 seasons as the head coach. The Suns claimed the third volleyball state trophy in school history on Saturday after losing 22-25, 25-18, 25-17 to St. Thomas More in the title match.

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Kerr’s teams have won 630 games during 25 seasons

Tim kept from crying during the championship match, and he raced on the court after the final point to celebrate with his players. However, as the players began hugging while St. Thomas More celebrated, he couldn’t help himself. The Dick Vermeil of high school volleyball coaches gave a big sloppy bear hug to every player.

The last one was saved for his daughter, Ani, a senior setter. As the players hovered around the Redbird logo at center court, Tim squeezed tight. Both blubbered.

“He just told me that he loved me,” Ani said. “And he was proud of me.”

“She actually said I love you back, so that was pretty cool,” Tim said.

Tim and his wife, Michelle, have been married for 27 years. They have three girls — Ali, 25; Abi, 21; and Ani, 18 — and a son, Carson, 14. Watching Tim cry has become commonplace.

“He’s been pretty good this year (about not crying),” Ani said. “Well, he bawled after the Hartsburg-Emden game (in the sectional final). And whenever we have an assembly, he’ll bawl when he talks. If he talks for 30 minutes, he’ll spend 10 minutes trying not to cry.”

Ani Kerr: Playing for her dad has been ‘awesome’

Michelle remembered how emotional Tim was before his team’s last game in 2001, when the Suns finished fourth in the Class A state tournament.

“He seriously laid on the bed and sobbed for like 15 or 20 minutes,” she said.

Saturday’s match was particularly poignant for Tim, who coached all three of his daughters. When he’s at home, he tries to be Dad more than Coach.

“Actually with Ani, any talk I have with her usually starts with, ‘Clean up your room,’” Tim said with a smile. “She’s a typical kid — a 4.0 student, she’s going to be the valedictorian, and she’s trying to figure out where she wants to go to school. She puts a lot of pressure on herself, because she knew the history of this program and the expectations of this team.

“Once we won the super-sectional, she’s been a different kid. That burden was no longer on her shoulders, and the stress is off. She’s really lightened up. We’ve probably talked as much or more about volleyball this week than we have all season.”

Ani says playing for her father has been “awesome.”

“He’s hard on us,” she said as she stood next to her sisters after Friday’s match. “But this season, he hasn’t been really super duper hard.”

“Sometimes, when Ali and Abi were playing, I would say, ‘Hey, you know, that was kind of rough,’” Michelle said. “And he would say, ‘Well, I’m their coach tonight.’ And I’d say, ‘Well, I’m their mom, so lighten up.’ They don’t get any special treatment for sure. He just wants them to be better. He does that for all those players.”

Tears flow when Tim hears ‘We Are Never Getting Back Together’

Tim also cries when remembering former players. He admitted crying through most of a video played during a school assembly last week. It included highlights and comments from several players from the 1981 and 2001 teams.

“I saw former player Carrie Shaffer (in the video) walking in the gym with Ali on her shoulders,” Michelle said, “Ali was 5 years old. Even that made me bawl.”

Before Tim dropped the team off at Redbird Arena on Saturday, the Suns sang “We Are Never Getting Back Together” by Taylor Swift as the team bus made its way from the hotel.

“It’s not a song I should get sentimental about, but every time I hear that song for the rest of my life, I’ll start crying,” Tim said with a laugh. “The girls blare it from the top of their lungs. It’s actually a typical Taylor Swift breakup song, but for some reason, these girls like to get pumped up about it. It’s one of those sentimental songs for me.”

Wanna bet the Suns hear the song one more time at next week’s welcome home celebration?

Bring the tissues.