Chris Robertson gently cradled the Class 4A state championship trophy as he left Linn-Mar High School Sunday afternoon. "Can I keep it on my nightstand for a while?" he wondered.

He was kidding, of course. The trophy will find a permanent home in the Linn-Mar trophy case, assuming there's room. The Lions won their third state basketball title in eight years and the fourth in school history Saturday night, so it's getting crowded in that display case.

It's a nice problem to have.

Linn-Mar has made five trips to the state finals in the past eight years, compiling a 3-2 record in those games, and has won championships with three different groups of players.

"That's just unheard of, especially in Class 4A where you have so many kids that move from school to school," Robertson said after the Lions were honored at the school. "I think that's one of the things we take a lot of pride in, we've done it with Linn-Mar kids, kids that have come to our little-kids camps and moved on to our school. It's been an unbelievable ride."

The ride could continue indefinitely at Linn-Mar, which has one of the top programs in the state. Four starters graduate, including tournament MVP Matt Bohannon, but Marcus Paige will be back along with a talented group of juniors-to-be.

Robertson, 40, intends to coach again next season, but there's no guarantee he'll coach forever. He and his wife, Mandi, have four children, and he'd like to attend as many of their activities as possible, something that's difficult during the basketball season that runs from November to March.

In addition, Robertson would like to become an activities director or a school principal at some point in his career, which would mean stepping aside as a coach.

"Big picture, long range, that's probably what I need to do," he said. "It would allow me to spend more time with my family while my kids are young.

"As of right now I don't know of any opportunity, so as of right now I assume it will be the same (that he'll continue as head coach). But, you never know.

"I don't want to leave Linn-Mar, though," he said. "Ideally I'd like to stay here. This is where I've taught and worked my entire career. It's just a great community, so I'd love to stay here if something would open up, but we'll just see what happens down the road."

Robertson has been coaching at Linn-Mar since the 1995-96 school year. He spent 10 years as an assistant coach, then became the head coach for the 2005-06 campaign after Mark Hutcheson stepped aside after winning the state title in 2004 and placing second in 2005.

When Hutcheson resigned, he said he wanted to spend more time with his children and attend more of their activities. Robertson can certainly relate to that.

"I'm sure it was a tough situation for him to step down, but he seemed really comfortable with it," said Robertson, who was Hutcheson's top aide at the time. "It happened at a great time for me, to get an opportunity to coach at a great program, a great school."

Hutcheson's children, Jaye and Nate, were just starting their high school careers at Linn-Mar when he resigned. Jaye is now a junior on the softball team at the University of Northern Iowa, while Nate is a sophomore on the basketball team at Western Michigan.

Hutcheson still works at Linn-Mar, and Robertson sees him on a daily basis. "I owe Mark a lot," he said.

Robertson's daughter, Taylor, is a freshman at Linn-Mar and plays basketball. He was able to attend many of her games this season, but next year would be difficult if Taylor is on the sophomore team due to numerous conflicts with boys varsity games.

"That will be a challenge," he said. "I do think about those things and we'll see what happens down the road."

The Robertsons also have three sons: Jacob, 11; Jack, 6; and Max, 2. The entire family was in Des Moines Saturday night when Linn-Mar beat Des Moines Hoover, 56-42, for the state title, and Jacob and Jack got to be ballboys and sit on the bench. Mandi, Taylor and Max were in the stands, and when the game ended Robertson made a point of connecting with the entire family.

"He's hugging Jacob and Jack there at the end," said Scott Mahmens, Linn-Mar's activities director. "He's holding them up and hugging them, and he's pointing to his wife in the stands with their little one, Max, and he's looking for Taylor."

Robertson said Mandi is the person who shuffles the kids around, especially in the winter, from one activity to another. "She probably doesn't get the thanks she deserves all the time," he said. "To have her and all the kids down in Des Moines to share the experience is really very special."

Robertson, from Newton, played basketball at Central College in Pella, graduating in 1992 with a business degree. He began his coaching career as an assistant at Cedar Rapids Regis High School and received his teaching degree from Coe College in 1995.

He worked for Hall of Fame coach Dick Breitbach at Regis, which at the time was in the midst of seven straight trips to the state basketball tournament. Robertson was there for the sixth and seventh trips, which at the time was a state record for most consecutive appearances. Linn-Mar broke that record this year with its eighth straight trip to the state
tournament.

"It made it a little more special for me this year, because I was a part of those (trips at Regis)," he said. "Not a big part, but a little bit."

Robertson's uncle, Jerry Nikkel, won three state basketball titles at Pella Christian High School in 1990, 1992 and 1993, and also made four other trips to the state tournament at Marshalltown, so there's championship coaching in the family.

Robertson took Linn-Mar from start to finish as the No.1 team in the state this season. The Lions began the season with high expecations, led by Paige and Bohannon, and they raced through 26 straight victories despite some key injuries, illness and a target on their back.

Robertson gives his players the freedom to enjoy themselves on trips, such as their journeys to Minneapolis and La Crosse (Wis.) this season, but the Lions know when it's time for business.

"It's unbelievable what he does for us as players to get us to play the best we can every night," said Bohannon. "I think he's the best coach in the state.

"He relates to us so well, off the court. Then once we get on the court, he knows what we need to do and he does a great job of getting the best out of us. He's an outstanding person, an outstanding coach."

Robertson normally appears to keep a gentle grip on his players during games, but not always. The Lions had a fat 23-point lead against Iowa City West in the semifinals of the state tournament Friday when Bohannon and Paige fired quick 3-pointers and missed, helping the Trojans get back in the game.

Robertson, annoyed, called a timeout and yelled at his star players.

"He was just quietly reminding us to stay focused during the entire game and not get complacement," smiled Paige, knowing there was nothing quiet about it. "He sensed we weren't carrying out the game-plan like we should have and he definitely let us know."

Following the game-plan was important, regardless of the opponent, as the Lions handled all of their assignments.

"He kept us confident, telling us we're expected to win all these games as the No.1 team," said Paige. "He also game-planned every game the same, no matter if we were playing a team that hasn't won a game or a team that's highly ranked."

The Lions were honored at the school Sunday afternoon, with hundreds of fans attending. When it was over, a seventh grader came up to Robertson to shake hands. It was Jordan Bohannon, the youngest of the Bohannon brothers, all of whom have won state titles at Linn-Mar with Jason in 2004, Zach in 2007 and Matt in 2011.

Jordan Bohannon, a talented young athlete, will be a freshman at Linn-Mar in two years. Robertson anticipates being the head coach when Jordan arrives, but makes no promises.

"No. No promises," he said. "I know next year will be the first year I've been the head coach and not have a Bohannon on my team, so it will be different."

Robertson, who is the Dean of Students at Linn-Mar, could be a full-time administrator by the time Jordan Bohannon is ready to play for the Lions. On the other hand, Robertson is intrigued by the possibility of coaching his own sons in high school.

"I don't know if I'll be around that long, but that would be neat," he said. "Ideally, that would be something I'd enjoy, to be able to coach my boys. But we'll see what happens."