RIP KENNY KLEIN: All who knew UofL’s Kenny Klein agree he was special

By RUSS BROWN • Photos Provided

Between the time when the Voice-Tribune publishing deadline for July passed and now, Louisville and the national sports world lost a beloved and respected icon when former University of Louisville Sports Information and Senior Associate Athletic Director Kenny Klein passed away. But it's never too late to pay tribute to a special person.

Klein, 66, died on June 25 after a choking episode at a downtown Louisville restaurant. In the two ensuing weeks prior to his death he never regained consciousness.

Condolences and tributes poured in from throughout college athletics and the sports world at large -- from Hall of Fame coaches and national broadcasters to former players, news media and fellow SIDs. All with the same message: that Kenny Klein was among the best they had ever known on every level.

"In this profession, there are moments that test people -- moments filled with pressure, heartbreak, controversy, and change," UofL athletics director Josh Heird said. "Time and time again, I watched Kenny navigate those moments with a steadiness and grace that I have never seen replicated. He treated people with respect, never made anyone feel small, and had a remarkable ability to bring calm to even the most difficult situations. Then when the storm ended, Kenny remained trusted, respected, and beloved from all sides."

"I've tried to learn from it because it is much harder than it looks," Heird continued. "Kenny made it seem effortless. What Kenny built at Louisville over four decades was far more than a career; it was a standard for how to treat people, how to represent an institution with integrity, and how to love this work without ever losing sight of what matters most. We will miss him dearly. We'll miss his voice, his laugh, and especially his signature grin. We are forever grateful for the example he set for all of us."

Kenny was particularly special to me. We arrived at the University of Louisville at the same time for different reasons in 1983. Klein, 23, a graduate of Murray State, had just been hired as Sports Information Director for U of L after spending two years in the same role at Morehead State. I was new to the Louisville beat for The Courier-Journal after 15 years covering Indiana and the Big Ten as Indiana Sports Editor for the C-J.

Thus began a professional and personal relationship that I have cherished for nearly four decades. I was heartbroken by his passing, as are hundreds of the people who have been privileged to know him and work with him.

Former UofL basketball coach and Hall of Famer Rick Pitino, now the head coach at St. John's University in New York City, delivered the eulogy for Kenny. The two had become extremely close during Pitino's 17 years with the Cardinals, and the coach showed his gratitude and friendship by gifting Klein a red Lexus IS 350 sports car for his 50th birthday.

One year after Kenny retired from UofL, Pitino convinced him to join the St. John's program as his personal assistant. He was only supposed to be there for a month or so. He wound up staying for the entire 2024-25 season, then returned for the 2025-26 campaign. Pitino said they were "inseparable," to the point that he even once delayed tipoff of a game because Klein didn't have his usual seat next to him on the bench.

"There was nobody better in life than Kenny," Pitino said during his eulogy. "He is the most special person I've met in my 73 years. If anyone deserves celebration in life, and true honor, that's Kenny Klein. There's no better dad. There's no better husband. There's no better friend. There's no better SID to the media. There's no better meeting a person on the street, with that smile.

"Kenny, I'm never going to say goodbye to you. I'm going to look over at that empty seat to the left. And for everybody in this room, we won't say goodbye. We'll just keep him in our hearts forever."

Kenny was hired by then athletic director Bill Olsen, despite objections from some that Klein was too young and inexperienced. But Olsen's willingness to take that risk turned out much better than even he could have  expected. When Klein retired he was considered the gold standard in his field.

"Successful people have three traits," Olsen told me. "They are bright, organized, and hard workers. Kenny had all of those qualities, plus he was respectful, loyal, and he lived by the Golden Rule. He was a genuinely nice person. I don't remember Kenny Klein complaining about anything. He deserves to be put into the same category of respect as any player or coach ever at U of L."

"He's one of one," said former U of L AD Tom Jurich, also a close friend. "There's nobody that's ever been like him and no one that will ever be like him again." 

In his nearly four decades at UofL, Klein, a native of Southside, Tennessee, helped navigate Louisville through both crises and victories. They included national basketball championships in 1986 and 2013, the 'strippergate' scandal involving the alleged use of prostitutes for hoops recruits, an FBI investigation of college basketball programs and Pitino's personal Karen Sypher sex episode. No matter what, Kenny was a beacon of unruffled professionalism.

"You just try to be truthful and try to work your way through it," Klein said in 2022. "It's not something that anybody necessarily would enjoy, I would think, but you understand that's part of it. We've had some tough times, but we've managed to come out well on the other side of it."

When I began covering Louisville athletics, it didn't take me long to realize that I was in the company of an exceptional person. It's rare when an SID is trusted and respected by both media members and administrators while also being revered by his peers, but Kenny consistently pulled off that hat trick while working for four ADs -- Olsen, Jurich, Vince Tyra and Josh Heird -- and as U of L's basketball representative during the regimes of Denny Crum, Pitino, Chris Mack and David Padgett. Everything Kenny did was first class.

"I can't even express how heartbroken I am," Crum's widow, Susan Sweeney Crum said. "Denny and I thought the absolute world of Kenny, not only because he was the best at what he did, but because he was such a good, kind, genuine, loyal person."

Kenny's impact was felt not only by UofL, but many others. A list of his accomplishments could fill a locker room. He coordinated the computerized statistics operation at the Final Four for more than 40 years. He assisted with media relations annually for the Kentucky Derby. He served as media coordinator for the 1987 USA Pan American Games men's basketball team and was the local media center committee chairman for the 1996, 2000 and 2014 PGA Championships in Louisville. He also served in a similar capacity for the 2008 Ryder Cup and 2004 and 2011 Senior PGA Championships, and assisted in the media operations at the 1999 Ryder Cup in Boston.

Klein was inducted into the College Sports Information Directors of America (COSIDA) Hall of Fame in 2015 and into the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame in 2017. In 2012, he received the Katha Quinn Award from the U.S. Basketball Writers Association for providing outstanding service to media members covering college basketball.

Klein is survived by his wife, Donna; sons Alex and Brady; and three grandchildren.

Russ Brown is a former sportswriter for The Courier Journal and USA Today. He is a member of the Indiana Sportswriters and Sportscasters Hall of Fame. He may be contacted via email at 0926.russ.brown@gmail.com.