#TBT: Wheatley Reigns Among Greats
July 16, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Tyrone Wheatley went on to star as a running back at the University of Michigan and play 10 seasons in the National Football League, four with the New York Giants and six with the Oakland Raiders before retiring after the 2004 season.
But before Wheatley became nationally known for his rare combination of power and speed carrying the football, he was hailed as arguably the most dominant track & field athlete in MHSAA history.
As a junior at Dearborn Heights Robichaud, Wheatley became the first to win four individual events at an MHSAA Finals, finishing first in the long jump, 100 and 200-meter dashes and 110-meter hurdles at the 1990 Lower Peninsula Class B meet. His 49 points allowed Robichaud to edge Three Rivers by three to win the team title.
Class records were retired with the move to divisions in 2000, and Wheatley retains the LP Class B Final record in long jump at 23 feet, 10 3/4 inches from 1989 and the 110 hurdles meet record of 13.7 seconds set in 1991.
He won nine MHSAA Finals championships total from 1989-91, adding three more as a senior. Five athletes have won four events at an MHSAA Boys Track & Field Final, but Wheatley is one of only two to do so in a Lower Peninsula meet.
In addition to football, Wheatley earned three letters in track & field at U-M, earning an All-America honor by finishing eighth in the 110 hurdles at the 1995 NCAA Championships.
Wheatley was hired this offseason to coach running backs as an assistant to U-M head football coach Jim Harbaugh. He coached Robichaud's football team briefly after leaving the NFL before moving on to the college and pro ranks as an assistant.
Fowler Boys Clinch 1st Team Title since 1988, Buford Leaps Into Record Book
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
June 2, 2024
HUDSONVILLE — In 2023, Anthony Buford of Detroit Frederick Douglass would have won the long jump at the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 4 Track & Field Finals if not for a historic effort.
Buford nearly was first, but had to settle for second after Peck’s Alex Affer jumped a meet-record distance of 23-feet, 1.5-inches.
Affer graduated last year, but he still was providing Buford plenty of motivation when he started the long jump event at this year’s event.
“My main motivator all year has been my main guy Alex Affer, the former record holder at 23-1,” Buford said. “He was really anticipating me breaking his record this year.”
Buford made good on Affer’s proclamation by setting a new Division 4 Finals record, jumping a recorded distance of 23 feet, 2 inches, into a headwind to best what Affer achieved a year ago.
“I was really surprised I broke it with that headwind I was jumping into,” Buford said. “But honestly, I just had to make it happen.”
Oh, but Buford wasn’t done during his busy and successful day.
Buford then won the 400 dash, finishing first in a time of 49.91 in a headwind and with rain coming down.
“I’ve been fighting to beat 49 (seconds) all season,” said Buford, who decided to focus on the 400 meters and long jump this year after primarily competing in the 100 and 200-meter dashes last year. “Just to come out here and beat my time while it was raining and a headwind coming into my face, that really shows how much more mentally tough I’ve gotten over time.”
Buford was also second to teammate Adrian Smith in the 200 and ran in the 1,600 relay to help Douglass finish second on the day.
Buford’s performance wasn’t quite enough to lift his team past Fowler, which captured the team title with 56.5 points, four more than Douglass. It was Fowler’s first Finals team championship since 1988.
Brady Feldpausch led Fowler’s point scoring by finishing first in the 110 hurdles with a time of 14.57, running as part of the winning team in the 800 relay, taking second in the 300 hurdles and then being a part of the winning 1,600 relay that clinched the title.
“It feels amazing,” Feldpausch said. “I don’t know what to say. We just all have the same mindset. We come to practice and work hard. We knew if we all ran like we knew how to, we’d have a shot.”
Fowler entered the last event, the 1,600 relay, knowing that in order to clinch the team win it had to win the race and have Douglass finish fifth or lower.
A strong event all year for the Eagles, they delivered again, winning in a time of 3:26.43. Pair that with a ninth-place finish by Douglass, and Fowler had what it needed.
Fowler head coach Brett Schafer credited unsung heroes with stepping up for his team and fulfilling a goal talked about all year.
“We scored in field events where we didn’t expect to,” he said. “Our first meeting with them at the start of the year, our whole goal was to hang a banner in the gym. We did that today.”
Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep took third with 44 points after winning the last two LPD4 team titles.
PHOTOS (Top) Fowler’s Brady Feldpausch, left, edges Reading’s Tayshawn Bester to win the 110 hurdles Saturday at Baldwin Middle School. (Middle) Detroit Douglass’ Anthony Buford finishes his win in the 400. (Click for more from Ken Swart/RunMichigan.com.)