Rest assured, Bob Frederick hired the right person to lead Kansas University’s track teams into the new millennium.
So says former KU All-America and Olympic sprinter Cliff Wiley, a big supporter of Stanley Redwine. The new KU head coach beat out approximately 80 candidates for the job.
Cliff Wiley of KU’s new track coach, Stanley Redwine
“It was a no-brainer,” said Wiley, a member of a nine-person search committee that recommended sixth-year Tulsa coach Redwine, UTEP’s Bob Kitchens and Arizona State’s Walt Drenth to Jayhawk athletics director Frederick, who made the final call.
“I love KU track and probably know as much about what’s going on with the program now as any other alum,” noted the 45-year-old Wiley, an attorney based in Kansas City.
“Stanley Redwine has all the tools to revive our program. To see what he accomplished at Tulsa with no facilities is unbelievable.”
Minus an indoor or outdoor track, Tulsa holds track workouts at at one of the city’s high schools.
“What a lot of people don’t know is Stanley recruited several kids from Kansas to Tulsa. Now he will be able to recruit the top athletes in Kansas to KU,” Wiley said. “As a former world class athlete (600 and 800 runner), he is not just talking the game. He has been there. That does count for something in recruiting and coaching young competitors.”
Wiley scofs at media reports that indicate some KU track alums favored ex-Jayhawk decathlete Steve Rainbolt, head coach at Kent.
“I love Steve Rainbolt. He was a teammate of mine. He is a friend of mine. The choice between Stanley Redwine and Steve Rainbolt is a no-brainer. I can’t get any stronger than that,” Wiley said.
“Steve has done some great things at Kent. Maybe in five years, 10 years he’d be better, but not now. We are going to see great things from Stanley Redwine.”
Wiley was upset by speculation Redwine was preferred because he is African-American. KU’s search committee of nine interviewed eight individuals. Two were minorities.
“I’ve read some things that I do not believe would have been written if Stanley Redwine were white,” Wiley said. “To say he was hired because he was black seems to degrade the work the committee did and all Stanley Redwine has accomplished.
“The committee recommended the best candidates, not the best black or white candidates, but the best for the job. We had more an ideological split than anything on that committee.
“We had former KU distance, middle distance, sprinters, hurdlers and throwers represented on the committee. I am a sprinter. Naturally I want to see some sprinters here. Distance runners want distance runners to excel here. In terms of what color is this guy … this was not discussed.”
More than anything, Wiley says he was sold on Redwine’s background. The 39-year-old Redwine spent 11 seasons as an assistant coach at his alma mater — Arkansas — the country’s most dominant school in track and field.
“Roy Williams was an assistant coach at North Carolina when he was hired at Kansas. He was well-taught, working in such a good program,” Redwine said. “Now you have Roy Williams assistants like Steve Robinson (Florida State) moving on and doing a great job in basketball at other schools.
“The same with Stanley Redwine. He was well-taught at Arkansas. He showed it at Tulsa, a private school with no facilities. Arkansas is the most successful team in NCAA history. You don’t see them going on probation so they must do it the right way. Stanley came from that program. He is going to be great for the University of Kansas. He will hit the ground running fast.”
Wiley says he’s discussed the Redwine hire with several former KU athletes.
“I sent e-mails to all the KU track guys I had e-mail addresses for,” Wiley said. “I said, ‘This is who got the job and I think he’s a great person.’ In every instance they wrote back and said Stanley sounds like a great selection. I think you are going to see a lot of people get behind him as he builds the program.”