University of North Carolina Athletics
Wheatley Joins Carolina As Sprints And Hurdles Coach
August 21, 2019 | Track & Field
CHAPEL HILL — Adrian Wheatley, a three-time USTFCCCA Regional Coach of the Year, will join the University of North Carolina as an assistant coach for the sprints and hurdles events, Director of Track & Field and Cross Country Chris Miltenberg announced Wednesday. Wheatley comes to Carolina after eight seasons with the University of Illinois track & field program where he served as an assistant coach during the 2012-18 season before being named associate head coach in August 2018.
"We are really excited to have Adrian join our staff," Miltenberg said. "He has undoubtedly proven himself as one of the very best sprint coaches in the country and his experience makes him an ideal fit for the Carolina student-athletes and our mission. We return a great young group on both sides in the sprints and I know Coach Wheatley will continue to elevate our national presence in those events. In all my conversations with Adrian, the part that stood out to me the most was how fired up he was about building out our entire team together and how he truly believes we can put Carolina Track & Field back among the very best in the country. We can't wait go get Adrian and his family to Chapel Hill and get rolling."
During his time at Illinois, Wheatley built a foundation of success in the men's sprints, hurdles, relays, and horizontal jumps. He coached 62 All-America performances, 58 NCAA Championship qualifiers, 93 NCAA Regional qualifiers, 27 individual Big Ten champions, 3 Big Ten relay titles and 36 All-Big Ten finishers. His guidance helped rewrite Illinois history with 44 of his athletes now sitting on the top ten performance list in their respective events and seven holding school records. Wheatley was named USTFCCCA Midwest Region Men's Assistant Coach of the Year three times (2013 indoors, 2015 indoors and outdoors).
Wheatley's most recent success came when he guided Big Ten 100-meter champion and record holder, Devin Quinn, to a seventh-place finish in the men's 100-meter dash at the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Championships, where he ran 10.01 in the semifinals. Quinn also ran a career-best 200 time of 20.31 at NCAA Outdoors. The Illini men's 4x100 team earned second-team All-America honors at NCAA Outdoors after clocking 39.01 to finish ninth.
The Illini sprints and hurdles program also had a successful season in 2018 with seven All-Americans. David Kendziera led the performances with a remarkable final day at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, running 13.48 for second in the 110-meter hurdles and, 40 minutes later, 48.42 for third in the 400-meter hurdles. Quinn earned All-America honors in the 100, 200 and 4x100.
In 2017, Wheatley guided Kendziera to three first-team All-America honors in the hurdle events — fourth in the 60-meter hurdles during indoors, and third in the 110-meter hurdles and seventh in the 400-meter hurdles during outdoors.
Wheatley revitalized the Fighting Illini relays, placing three relays on the podium over the course of his first five seasons after the program had only done so four times total since 1971 and last earned All-America finishes in 1994. In 2015, Wheatley's 4x400m relay team broke the school record with a time of 3:06.58 at NCAA Championships and placed fourth indoors. At the conference level, Wheatley's relays have won Big Ten titles five times between the indoor and outdoor seasons.
In the sprints and hurdles, Wheatley's biggest success came in guiding seven-time All-American DJ Zahn. As a senior in 2015, Zahn earned First Team All-America accolades in the 400 meters (indoors and outdoors), as well as with the 4x400m and 4x100m relay teams. At Big Ten Championships, Zahn won the 200 meters, 400 meters and 4x400m relay and was named Big Ten Track Athlete of the Year and Big Ten Track Athlete of the Championships. Zahn currently holds the school record in the indoor 200 meters, outdoor 200 meters and indoor 400 meters with career best times of 45.51 in the 400 and 20.37 in the 200.
Wheatley's athletes have gone on to have success on the international stage. Former Illini Juan Paul Green represented the United States in the 2013 Pan Am Games with a gold medal in the 4x400m relay. Wheatley also coached Stanly Azie (Nigeria, 2012) and David Kendziera (USA, 2016) to Olympic Trials. Wheatley continues to work with Kendziera, who currently ranks seventh in the world in the 400-meter hurdles and will represent Team USA at the 2019 USATF vs. Europe Match.
Prior to Illinois, Wheatley spent three seasons at the University of Virginia where guided athletes to two indoor All-American honors and three outdoor All-American honors. He coached 11 regional qualifiers, three ACC champions and 16 All-ACC award winners. Wheatley's athletes broke every hurdle school record in the book, with Ayla Smith (60mH - 8.39, 100H -13.51, 400mH - 56.54), Adams Abdulrazaaq (60mH -7.75, 110mH - 13.66) and Steve Delice (400mH - 50.02) all setting new school records. Off the track, his athletes were honored with six All-ACC Academic Team accolades and five USTFCCCA All-Academic Team certificates.
Before Virginia, Wheatley coached six conference champions, seven All-conference performers, four NCAA Regional qualifiers and one NCAA Indoor provisional qualifier between two seasons at Austin Peay State University (2007-08) and two seasons at the College of Charleston (2005-06).
After a successful prep career at Thomas Worthington High School in Ohio, Wheatley ran collegiately at the University of Tennessee. He was a member of the 2001 NCAA Outdoor Championship and the 2002 NCAA Outdoor runner-up teams and also won back-to-back SEC Outdoor Championships in those same seasons. Wheatley earned back-to-back All-American honors in the outdoor 4x400m (2001, 2002) as well as three All-SEC finishes in the 800 meters (1999) and in the 4x400 (2001, 2002). He was a part of a school record setting 4x400m relay, running 3:02.13, a record that still stands today. Wheatley was elected the team captain by his teammates in 2000 and was named the Ed South's Men's Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2002 before graduating with a degree in Urban Planning in 2002.
Wheatley, a native of Worthington, Ohio, is married to Hollie, and they have five children.
"We are really excited to have Adrian join our staff," Miltenberg said. "He has undoubtedly proven himself as one of the very best sprint coaches in the country and his experience makes him an ideal fit for the Carolina student-athletes and our mission. We return a great young group on both sides in the sprints and I know Coach Wheatley will continue to elevate our national presence in those events. In all my conversations with Adrian, the part that stood out to me the most was how fired up he was about building out our entire team together and how he truly believes we can put Carolina Track & Field back among the very best in the country. We can't wait go get Adrian and his family to Chapel Hill and get rolling."
During his time at Illinois, Wheatley built a foundation of success in the men's sprints, hurdles, relays, and horizontal jumps. He coached 62 All-America performances, 58 NCAA Championship qualifiers, 93 NCAA Regional qualifiers, 27 individual Big Ten champions, 3 Big Ten relay titles and 36 All-Big Ten finishers. His guidance helped rewrite Illinois history with 44 of his athletes now sitting on the top ten performance list in their respective events and seven holding school records. Wheatley was named USTFCCCA Midwest Region Men's Assistant Coach of the Year three times (2013 indoors, 2015 indoors and outdoors).
Wheatley's most recent success came when he guided Big Ten 100-meter champion and record holder, Devin Quinn, to a seventh-place finish in the men's 100-meter dash at the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Championships, where he ran 10.01 in the semifinals. Quinn also ran a career-best 200 time of 20.31 at NCAA Outdoors. The Illini men's 4x100 team earned second-team All-America honors at NCAA Outdoors after clocking 39.01 to finish ninth.
The Illini sprints and hurdles program also had a successful season in 2018 with seven All-Americans. David Kendziera led the performances with a remarkable final day at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, running 13.48 for second in the 110-meter hurdles and, 40 minutes later, 48.42 for third in the 400-meter hurdles. Quinn earned All-America honors in the 100, 200 and 4x100.
In 2017, Wheatley guided Kendziera to three first-team All-America honors in the hurdle events — fourth in the 60-meter hurdles during indoors, and third in the 110-meter hurdles and seventh in the 400-meter hurdles during outdoors.
Wheatley revitalized the Fighting Illini relays, placing three relays on the podium over the course of his first five seasons after the program had only done so four times total since 1971 and last earned All-America finishes in 1994. In 2015, Wheatley's 4x400m relay team broke the school record with a time of 3:06.58 at NCAA Championships and placed fourth indoors. At the conference level, Wheatley's relays have won Big Ten titles five times between the indoor and outdoor seasons.
In the sprints and hurdles, Wheatley's biggest success came in guiding seven-time All-American DJ Zahn. As a senior in 2015, Zahn earned First Team All-America accolades in the 400 meters (indoors and outdoors), as well as with the 4x400m and 4x100m relay teams. At Big Ten Championships, Zahn won the 200 meters, 400 meters and 4x400m relay and was named Big Ten Track Athlete of the Year and Big Ten Track Athlete of the Championships. Zahn currently holds the school record in the indoor 200 meters, outdoor 200 meters and indoor 400 meters with career best times of 45.51 in the 400 and 20.37 in the 200.
Wheatley's athletes have gone on to have success on the international stage. Former Illini Juan Paul Green represented the United States in the 2013 Pan Am Games with a gold medal in the 4x400m relay. Wheatley also coached Stanly Azie (Nigeria, 2012) and David Kendziera (USA, 2016) to Olympic Trials. Wheatley continues to work with Kendziera, who currently ranks seventh in the world in the 400-meter hurdles and will represent Team USA at the 2019 USATF vs. Europe Match.
Prior to Illinois, Wheatley spent three seasons at the University of Virginia where guided athletes to two indoor All-American honors and three outdoor All-American honors. He coached 11 regional qualifiers, three ACC champions and 16 All-ACC award winners. Wheatley's athletes broke every hurdle school record in the book, with Ayla Smith (60mH - 8.39, 100H -13.51, 400mH - 56.54), Adams Abdulrazaaq (60mH -7.75, 110mH - 13.66) and Steve Delice (400mH - 50.02) all setting new school records. Off the track, his athletes were honored with six All-ACC Academic Team accolades and five USTFCCCA All-Academic Team certificates.
Before Virginia, Wheatley coached six conference champions, seven All-conference performers, four NCAA Regional qualifiers and one NCAA Indoor provisional qualifier between two seasons at Austin Peay State University (2007-08) and two seasons at the College of Charleston (2005-06).
After a successful prep career at Thomas Worthington High School in Ohio, Wheatley ran collegiately at the University of Tennessee. He was a member of the 2001 NCAA Outdoor Championship and the 2002 NCAA Outdoor runner-up teams and also won back-to-back SEC Outdoor Championships in those same seasons. Wheatley earned back-to-back All-American honors in the outdoor 4x400m (2001, 2002) as well as three All-SEC finishes in the 800 meters (1999) and in the 4x400 (2001, 2002). He was a part of a school record setting 4x400m relay, running 3:02.13, a record that still stands today. Wheatley was elected the team captain by his teammates in 2000 and was named the Ed South's Men's Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2002 before graduating with a degree in Urban Planning in 2002.
Wheatley, a native of Worthington, Ohio, is married to Hollie, and they have five children.
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