WVU alum returns to high school alma mater as one of nation's youngest basketball coaches

Coley's hometown of Oxford, N.C., sits about 40 minutes north of Durham. The community faces similar challenges as other small, rural communities in poverty, instability and limited opportunities.

Coley and his family came to the community when he was sixth grade after his father, Alvin, was named as the town's chief of police. His mother, Stacey Carter-Coley, worked as an attorney as law and order literally ruling the household.

As Keenan moved on to Oxford Prep, he thrived in the small-school environment. His graduating class had just 34 students. He served as an after-school counselor at the school for grades K-6. He played four years of varsity basketball as the team's point guard and became the first athlete in the program's history to sign with a four-year university for basketball. The point guard position suited him. Leadership came naturally, even as a teenager navigating a challenging community.

"I come from a competitive family," Coley says. "My mom played Division I tennis. My sister played Division I tennis. We joke about my dad for being the worst athlete in the family."

The competitive spirit ran straight into the classroom as well. By his senior year at Oxford Prep, Coley had accumulated over 40 college credits through dual enrollment. He graduated at 17, ready for the next level.

Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, N.C., just outside of the mountains of nearby Asheville, offered Coley the opportunity to play Division III basketball. The small liberal arts school embraced diversity and creativity.

While he had dreams of playing for four years, his body had other plans. A knee surgery during his junior year of high school had already compromised his recruitment. COVID-19 wiped out half his senior season, further limiting his exposure to college scouts. At Warren Wilson, Achilles problems joined the knee issues. Then came the seizures.

The summer after his freshman year, while working at Dick's Sporting Goods, Coley experienced multiple seizures. Doctors diagnosed him with epilepsy. Heading into his sophomore season, the writing was mostly on the wall: the season would be his last. With his 40+ credits he brought with him from high school, he put himself on a path to graduate in just two years.

Coley played his final game in the Golden State Warriors' D-League arena in Santa Cruz. Warren Wilson had made the conference tournament, traveling across the country for the Coast To Coast Conference tournament. On his last play, Coley went up for a contested shot and came down hurt again.

"I was like, I saw my whole career just sort of flash in front of my eyes," he remembers. "Like it was just like I even in my last game, I still can't make it out of this game, like fully healthy.

"I was just angry at the sport," he admits. "And it's not wrong to say that I was mad at the sport because I was."