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Former big leaguer, D-I coach Bobby Randall humbled by Kansas Sports Hall of Fame honor
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
It may seem remarkable that a kid who grew up in Gove, Kansas would eventually play Major League Baseball. But according to Bobby Randall, it’s not quite as unlikely as it seems today.
Former Major Leaguer and Division I coach Bobby Randall will be inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame on Saturday at Washburn University. [Submitted photo/Kansas Sports Hall of Fame]
When Randall was drafted out of high school by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1966, he wasn’t unique.
“It was a time when small towns played baseball,” Randall said. “We played baseball fall and spring, didn’t have football. So, all those little towns played baseball, while a lot of the big schools didn’t have school baseball.
“The year that I was drafted, Ron Schueler, from a town called Catherine, over by Hays, was drafted. And Bill Russell from Pittsburg was drafted. All three of us small town Kansas kids were drafted that same year.”
Randall eventually reached the major leagues, became a Division I head coach, and is now a Kansas Sports Hall of Famer. With nine other inductees, he will be enshrined in a ceremony at Washburn University on Aug. 2.
Growing up in Gove wasn’t the obstacle it might seem. It was, in fact, a great place to grow up, Randall said.
“In Gove, they would turn the lights on at the baseball field and the whole town would come and sit in their cars around the fence and watch the game,” Randall recalled. “If you got a basehit, they would honk. It was like having 40,000 people at Yankee Stadium. That’s what it felt like to us.
“Baseball was an important part of the culture. It’s changed now. There is no small-town baseball anymore. That is sad.”
Randall said baseball games – pickup or organized – were rare in Gove. He said he never played more than 25 games in a season. Most of his training came from playing catch with his father or throwing the ball against the garage.
“I had no idea (the Dodgers) were going to draft me. I didn’t know anybody had been watching me,” Randall said. “If you’ve got talent, they will find you. There’s umpires, other coaches, people spread the word. Those scouts have their ear to the ground and it’s rare that a stone gets unturned.”
Randall turned down the Dodgers to attend Kansas State.
“I didn’t think I was ready to play professional baseball coming from a town of 300 people. I’d never played on a grass infield,” Randall said. “I just thought ‘I need to go to college.’ I didn’t have any dreams of playing in the major leagues. I wanted to play professionally just because I wanted to keep playing baseball. But I knew that going to college was the wise thing for me to do.
“I was not offered much of a bonus, so it was easy to turn that down. I had a partial scholarship to K-State. I figured, if I’m any good, I can go there and get better, then sign out of college.”
Randall didn’t get much of an opportunity at K-State until his junior season. He made the most of it, batting .390 and earning All-Big Eight honors.
Kansas Sports Hall of Fame inductee Cliff Wiley a game-changer on and off the track
By TODD FERTIG
TopSports.news
For all his accomplishments in track and field, it’s possible that the most significant aspects of Cliff Wiley’s career occurred away from the track.
Former University of Kansas track star Cliff Wiley will be inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame on Aug. 2 at Washburn University. [Submitted photo/Kansas Sports Hall of Fame]
One of the world’s top sprinters in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Wiley will be inducted to the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame at a ceremony at Washburn University on August 2.
Highlighting Wiley’s career are wins in the men’s 400 meters at the 1981 Athletes World Cup in Rome and at the 1983 Pan American Games in Caracas. As a member of the University of Kansas track team, Wiley was an All-American and three-time national champion.
But before he hit those heights, Wiley was embroiled in a lawsuit with far-reaching implications for college athletes.
Having accepted Pell Grant money, which the NCAA considered an extra benefit, in addition to his track scholarship, Wiley was ruled ineligible by the governing body.
“It just didn’t make any sense to me,” Wiley said about the NCAA ruling. “I was 19 years old, fighting a case against the NCAA in federal court, sitting there with a guy from the Douglas County Legal Aid Society. We look over at the NCAA lawyers and they’re wearing these expensive suits…they weren’t shopping at the discount store.
“Where I came from, you tried to stay as far away from the law as you could, because in my neighborhood, if you had contact with the legal system, it was because you had done something wrong, or somebody had done something wrong to you.”
The lead plaintiff in Clifford Wiley vs. the National Collegiate Athletic Association, Wiley wound up separated from his KU teammates and without much of a support system.
“It was a tough deal,” Wiley said. “I didn’t understand all of the legalities, so it was difficult to talk to your family and friends about it.
“Other athletes were getting (Pell Grant) money. They would ask me what to do. I said ‘Keep taking the money. I wouldn’t tell anybody about it. But keep taking the money.' ”
Wiley trained on his own during the spring of his freshman year while the case went to court. He was finally permitted to compete thanks to an court injunction.
“I only competed in two meets that year – the conference meet and the NCAA meet,” Wiley said. “Then you go to the Olympic Trials. That’s not enough time when you’ve been sitting out the whole outdoor season, training by yourself.”
In what Wiley calls the biggest disappointment of his career, he failed to make the 1976 Olympic team.
“Guys who I had beaten my freshman year made the team,” Wiley said. “I lost that opportunity. The 200 was my best race, but I thought even if I didn’t make it in the individual race, I had a good chance of at least making the top six at the Olympic Trials in the 200, which would have put me in the relay pool.”
Wiley returned to KU and set his sights on the 1980 Olympics in Moscow. He qualified for the team in the 200 meters. But tensions between the U.S. and the Soviet Union escalated over the Soviets’ invasion of Afghanistan in late 1979, leading President Jimmy Carter to boycott the Summer Games. Wiley’s dream was once again deferred.
Those disappointments didn’t tarnish Wiley’s college resume, however. As one of the top sprinters coming out of high school in 1974, Wiley had offers from a lot of the best track programs in the nation. Kansas State University and the University of Kansas were both in the running.
“If you sent me a plane ticket, I came to visit your school,” Wiley said. “I visited Kansas and Kansas State because neither I nor my family understood the difference. It didn’t make sense to us. My mom would say, ‘The coach from Kansas called,’ not knowing which school it was. Several calls came in and we were like, ‘Didn’t I just talk to this coach yesterday?’ ”
Wiley ultimately selected the University of Kansas, which he called ‘one of the blue bloods of track and field in those days.’ He said the track athletes at KU exuded a quiet confidence.
“I could feel it when I got there,” Wiley said. “They were focused on the nationals. They had several guys who were national champions. It was like KU basketball is now – you just expected to be the best.”
Topeka Junior Golf Association crowns eight 2025 city champions
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
After being rained out on Monday, the Topeka Junior Golf Association wrapped up its 2025 summer season on Tuesday at Western Hills, crowning eight champions.
Eighty players competed in the six-event juniors program, ranging in age from 7 to 17 years old.
"It's increased from year's past and this has been a record summer as far as participants and the amount of people wanting to get involved with these junior tournaments,'' said Washburn Rural golf coach Jared Goehring, who has been the director of the TJGA program for 21 years.
Peyton Wright (middle) won the girls 15-17-year-old title in the Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championships, while Elise Eckert (left) finished second and Lauren Borjon third. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
LynnLee Mullins (middle) won the girls 13-14 title in Tuesday's Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championships at Western Hills while Brynlee Harmon (left) finished second and Reese Elliott third. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Sadie Harmon (right) and Rowan Martinek finished one-two in the 12 and under girls division in Tuesday's Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championships at Western Hills. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
On the girls side, Peyton Wright won the 15-17-year-old title while LynnLee Mullins won the 13-14 division and Sadie Harmon was the 12-and-under champion.
Easton Moulin (middle) won the 15-17 boys championship in a three-hole playoff in Tuesday's Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championships at Western Hills while Chase Hastert (left) finished second and Higgins Hawks third. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Brody Buessing (middle) won the 13-14 boys championship in Tuesday's Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championships at Western Hills while Leyton Eckert (left) finished second and Jaxon Leonardi third. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Easton Moulin won a three-hole playoff to take the championship in the boys 15-17 division while Brody Buessing was the 13-14 champ, Arjun Rao won the 11-12 division, Nikhil Rao was the 9-10 champ and Maxon Baker won the 8-and-under title.
Arjun Rao (middle) won the 11-12 boys championship in Tuesday's Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championships at Western Hills while Keaton Cox (left) finished second and Zander French third. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]L
Nikhil Rao (middle) won the 9-10 boys championship in Tuesday's Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championships at Western Hills while Beckham Schmidt (left) finished second and Jaxson McFarland third. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Maxon Baker (middle) won the 8 and under boys championship in Tuesday's Topeka Junior Golf Association City Championships at Western Hills while William Roe (left) finished second and Bennett Shinn third. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Wright, who attends Baldwin High, recorded an 18-hole score of 71, while Mullins had a nine-hole total of 49 and Harmon won with a nine-hole score of 54.
Moulin, a Holton resident, shot an 18-hole score of 77 while Buessing posted an 18-hole win at 75, Arjun Rao won with a nine-hole score of 4, Nikhil Rao won the 9-10 division with a nine-hole total of 37 and Walker shot a winning nine-hole score of 40.
TJGA CITY GOLF TOURNAMENT
