It has been more than three decades since Chuck Kelly coached and taught his final season at Archbishop Hoban High School.

But the man known affectionately as Coach Kelly was not forgotten.

Brian Kelly, one of Mr. Kelly's three sons, said the response from the Hoban community since his father's death Thursday at age 81 at Akron City Hospital has been nothing short of overwhelming.

''It's simply unbelievable the outpouring of support from his former players, students and friends,'' said Brian Kelly.

''We've known for a long time that we were all blessed to have been involved in his wonderful life.

''And we knew as a teacher and coach for 30 years that our dad touched the lives of a lot of people. But we never could have imagined how big the scope of his touch was.''

Mr. Kelly was born in Elizabeth, N.J., in 1927. His father moved his family to Barberton during the Great Depression. He was a football and track star at Barberton High School, and joined the U.S. Marine Corps after graduation.

After his 18-month stint in the Marines, Mr. Kelly played baseball and golf at Kent State University.

''His dream in life was to play major-league baseball,'' said Brian Kelly.

Mr. Kelly had a couple of tryouts, his son said, but he did not play professional baseball.

Instead, he stayed in athletics through coaching.

''The strange thing was that although my dad was 6-foot tall, he really never played a lot of basketball,'' Brian Kelly said. ''But it was as a basketball coach that he ultimately made his name. He went to camps all the time and worked with Tony Laterza, the old Akron U coach, to learn about the game. The trademark of my dad as a coach was that he worked his players to become very fundamentally sound.''

Mr. Kelly was hired at St. Mary High School in 1955 as an assistant basketball coach to Ned Endress. Mr. Kelly was named to replace Endress the next year when Endress moved to St. Vincent High School.

He compiled a 58-17 record in four seasons at St. Mary. He also compiled a 9-1 record as the head football coach in 1960 and was 51-11 in four years as the head baseball coach.

Mr. Kelly moved to Cleveland Cathedral Latin in 1960 as the head basketball coach.

''Latin was a power in the Senate League in Cleveland at that time and that made the position very attractive,'' his son said.

Mr. Kelly compiled a 56-63 record in six seasons as head basketball coach at Cathedral Latin.

Then fate intervened.

''My grandmother was ill and the job at Hoban was open,'' Brian Kelly said. ''He was commuting 70 miles every day from Cleveland to Barberton. The family made a decision for him to take the Hoban job and we moved to Akron.''

Mr. Kelly taught physical education and was the head coach of the basketball and golf teams. He also was an assistant football coach and was in charge of the sophomore team.

His three sons — Brian, Sean and Michael — all participated in sports and graduated from Hoban.

''My dad loved sports and he was a great coach,'' Brian Kelly said. ''But he never forced it on us. We did what we wanted to do.''

Mr. Kelly retired after 10 seasons at Hoban. He then spent 10 years in Akron Public Schools teaching physical education at Rankin and serving as an assistant coach in basketball at Firestone High School. One of the players he coached was University of Akron coach Keith Dambrot.

''The thing I remember most about coach Kelly was how big-hearted he always was,'' Dambrot said. ''He was always laid back, and he was perfect for coaching kids in that age group. He didn't have a mean bone in his body. He was a great man.''

Mr. Kelly is in the Ohio High School Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame, the Archbishop Hoban High School Sports Hall of Fame and the Barberton Sports Hall of Fame.

In addition to his three sons, Mr. Kelly is survived by his wife of 45 years, Patricia; brother Gerard; and seven grandchildren.

Mr. Kelly's funeral Mass is at 11 a.m. today at St. Sebastian Church. Burial will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery.

''He had a truly wonderful life,'' Brian Kelly said. ''He was an Irishman with a great wit and a story for every occasion. He loved every day because he was always doing what he loved to do.''