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***2006 DyeStatCal
Featured Meets***
  
 
   
WILLIE WHITE
(This article was written by Keith Conning, teacher of Consumer Economics and Business Law at Berkeley High School, prep editor of California Track & Running News, and the Nor Cal Running Review. It first appeared in Track & Field News, June ’81, then updated as of Sept. 1984 for the Track & Field Omnibook by Ken Doherty.) A strong high school team of either men or women is nothing surprising. Berkeley High has had those, the men taking the California State title last year (1980), while the women grabbed the honor in 1974 and ’76. But this year, coach Willie White’s Yellowjacket squad may well be the finest overall team in prep history. A sweeping statement? Perhaps, but try some of these stats on for size: Three Berkeley individuals lead the prep lists in their events. What’s up in this college town, the home of UC Berkeley? The prominence of Berkeley High is made up of equal parts of the atmosphere of BHS itself and the influence of Coach White and his three assistants, Aaron Ward, Arno Brewer and Sonia Williams. Willie has coached at Berkeley since 1966. A Cal graduate, he was a world-class sprinter 2 decades ago. He ranked 4th in the world in the 100 in 1957, 10th in ’58, contributed a leg to Cal’s World Record sprint medley (3:18.8, ’58) and placed 6th in the ’60 Olympic Trials 100. Voted 1980 Coach of the Year by the California Interscholastic Coaches Association, White feels that his powerful 1981 team really was born at the ’79 California State meet. “We caught many a cinder from Dave Mack of Locke High in Los Angeles,” he says. “Three of our current seniors were sophomores then and they remember finishing 7th in the mile relay.” One of the keys to the women’s program is the Berkeley East Bay Track Club (BEBTC) coached by White in the summer. “Athletes like Sherifa Sanders and Sharon Ware joined the club when they were 10 years old,” explains White. “During the last 2 years the whole group has worked together and has been unselfish. You must give up some of your individuality, even forego your speciality, for the team. Attitude in track & field is the key thing.” While White demands much from his athletes, in listening to them speak of their coach, it is clear that he gives back plenty. Says Pete Richardson, Berkeley’s record-setting 800-meter-runner, “Coach White is not only an excellent coach, he also knows you as a person. He is like a father to the track team. If I have any problems I can go to him. At a track meet, Mr. White can sit down and enjoy the meet because he has prepared us to take responsibility. Other coaches have to run around and keep after their athletes.” Johnny Langerston was a 2:01 half-miler during 1980; he attributes his improvement this year of 1:53.7 to White, the team and self-pride. “I look to Mr. White as a father,” he says. “He knows when something is wrong. Our team is like one big family. Everyone has pride in accomplishing their goals.” Adds Charles Clewis, a 48.2 quarter-miler, “Mr. White understands what we are going through, since he has been there himself.” Being on a team with other top-class athletes is also an inspiration to many of the athletes; the old idea of “success begets success.” Says Kenny Robinson, brother of 800 Olympian James Robinson, “I like being on this team. We always practice together and I want to work hard in every practice.” Unlike many prep teams, Berkeley practices at 7:30 each morning, men and women. The team runs on Cal’s superior facilities; Berkeley High’s own track is so old it doesn’t even have its own lane markings. Richardson continues, “The team relationship among the athletes is strong. You’ve got to want it, and we all want success. I attribute all my success to hard work and good concentration.” Walter Murray, also a wide receiver in football, compares: “On the track team, you’re never totally by yourself. Our competition is ourselves. In football, I felt alone.” Says hurdler Robyne Johnson, “Being on this team allows you to compete against some of the best competitors in the state. It makes you want to run. Our competitiveness carries over to the classroom. We all take many of the same classes and we actually compete in class.” Berkeley’s excellent academic program has been another factor responsible for the development of the school’s strong track program. Inter-district transfer rules allow students from out of the city proper to attend Berkeley High. But they often attend for BHS’s academics, as much as for athletics. So the ingredients are White and the school’s academic program. That’s not to say there haven’t been hitches in the Berkeley success story. The relay teams have been plagued by dropped batons at inopportune moments—as in the women’s team not making the state finals for 6 straight years. But those are small detours compared to the overall success of White’s program at Berkeley. In 1981, Berkeley High won State team titles for both men and women, the first time in California Interscholastic track and field. For 1982 and 1984, following the loss of many seniors on the 1981 team, the men’s program required rebuilding. Not at all an easy task in view of the withdrawal of the University’s facilities for practice, and the necessity of using those of Berkeley High—no jumping pits and a track in very poor condition. But in 1984, they finished second with 31 points, and seemed well on their way up again. In 1982, Berkeley High men won the State title without winning a single first place, a tribute to Coach White’s emphasis on balance and numbers. In 1983, the women won their third straight team title. In 1984, White became a coach at Cal State University Hayward.
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