Pair inducted into Track and Field hall of fame
Charlotte, NC - Two individuals who successfully impacted the association during their involvement have been inducted into the NJCAA Cross Country, Track & Field, and Half Marathon Coaches Association Hall of Fame, announced by the NJCAA National Office on Friday. Blaine Wiley and Christopher Beene have been honored in the 2021 class.
Blaine Wiley
Coach | South Plains (TX)
A native of Round Rock, Texas, Blaine Wiley graduated from Texas State in May 2000 with a degree in Business Administration and in May 2008, completed a Master's degree in Secondary Education. As a sprinter for Texas State, Wiley helped the Bobcats to a 1998 and 2000 Southland Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championship and was a member of the school record-breaking sprint medley relay.
As an assistant and recruiting coordinator from 2002-06 at Texas State, Wiley coached student-athletes to 63 school all-time top 10 performances, eight program records, and two Southland Conference records. Texas State produced seven conference championship teams over a span of four seasons, including a sweep of the 2004 men's and women's indoor and outdoor titles. Wiley also helped lead the Bobcats to a Southland Conference outdoor record points total for the women's team in 2004 with 195.
From 2006-2015, Wiley, then Associate Head Track and Field Coach, was instrumental in an unprecedented era at South Plains (TX). Wiley coached on a staff that earned the Texans 28 NJCAA national team championships while sending more than 70 athletes to NCAA Division I programs. An 11-time NJCAA coach of the year, Wiley coached student-athletes to set seven NJCAA national records, produced 107 NJCAA individual and relay national champions, and produced seven NJCAA men's and women's National Athletes of the Year (indoor and outdoor). Outside of the intercollegiate realm, Wiley has mentored eight Olympians and 12 IAAF World Championships participants, including three athletes who have won a total of six medals at Worlds.
In his 6th year as Assistant Track and Field Coach at the University of Alabama, Wiley coaches long sprints (men's and women's 400 meters, 800 meters, 400-meter hurdles, and relays) for the Crimson Tide, while also serving as the junior college liaison for recruiting.
Christopher Beene
Coach | South Plains (TX)
A former All-American decathlete at Angelo State University, Christopher Beene received both his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Kinesiology. Beene kickstarted a coaching career at Texas Tech University over four seasons, coaching multis, pole vault, and javelin. Beene also had coaching stints at Abilene Christian University and Texas A&M-Kingsville.
Following time with the Raiders, Beene coached at Wayland Baptist University, where he was named NAIA Region V and VI Women's Coach of the Year in 2003 and 2004. Those same years, Beene earned Men's Sooner Athletic Conference Coach of the Year honors in 2003 and 2004 and led his men's team to a Sooner Athletic Conference championship in 2003. From 2004-16, Beene was at the helm of the South Plains Texans track and field programs. During Beene's time in Levelland, the program claimed thirty-two titles in twelve years. A 14-time national coach of the year, Beene was the first NJCAA coach to lecture at the USTFCCCA Convention in 2015.
In 2016, he was named Texas Track and Field Coaches Association Coach of the Year and has been recognized as the national coach of the meet 25 times. Beene holds the record for most consecutive track and field titles with 10 men's outdoor track and field championship titles.
