Three Jayhawks To Be Inducted Into State Of Kansas Sports Hall Of Fame
June 29, 2011
LAWRENCE, Kan. — Three former Kansas Jayhawks – Raef LaFrentz, Bob Frederick and Dick Harp – will be inducted into the state of Kansas Sports Hall of Fame Oct. 2 it was announced Wednesday.
LaFrentz was an All-American basketball player at Kansas from 1995-98; Frederick, a longtime administrator and coach, served as KU’s AD from 1987-2001; and Harp was the school’s basketball coach from 1956-64.
The trio of former Jayhawks are part of a nine-person class, which marks the 50th Anniversary Class of the Hall of Fame. The Hall, located in Wichita, Kan., will have 210 individuals enshrined all-time.
Other members of this year’s class include KSU basketball player Kendra Wecker, KSU football player Mark Simoneau, Emporia State track star John Camien, Wichita State baseball pitcher Don Heinkel, Wichita State football coach Willie Jeffries and Pittsburg State football player Ronnie West.
Tickets to the induction ceremony may be purchased online at kshof.org or by calling 316-262-2038.
Raef LaFrentz
Raef LaFrentz, a two-time consensus basketball first-team All-American (1997-98) and two-time Big 12 Player of the Year (1997-98), is also the third-leading scorer in Kansas history. He earned first-team all-conference honors three times from 1996-98.
LaFrentz, who played at Kansas from 1995-98, is one of three players in school history to score 2,000 points. His 1,186 career rebounds placed him second all-time for the Jayhawks.
Ranked among the top 10 in Jayhawk history for career field goals, field goal attempts, free throws, free throw attempts, field goal percentage and blocked shots, LaFrentz is the Kansas leader for career double-doubles at 56.
He played an integral part in helping KU win 35 games during the 1997-98 season, as he averaged 19.8 points and 11.4 rebounds per game.
LaFrentz’s jersey was officially retired at Kansas on Feb. 16, 2003.
LaFrentz was the third pick in the 1998 NBA draft by the Denver Nuggets and spent three and one-half seasons with the team. He then played one and one-half years with Dallas, three years with Boston and two years with Portland, finishing his professional career in 2008.
LaFrentz averaged 10.1 points and 6.1 rebounds in 563 games in his 10-year NBA career.
Born in Hampton, Iowa, May 29, 1976, LaFrentz was a McDonald’s All-American and a USA Today first-team selection in high school.
Bob Frederick
Bob Frederick served as athletics director at the University of Kansas longer than anyone except the legendary Forrest “Phog” Allen.
Frederick became KU’s 12th athletics director in June 1987 and served in that position until July 2001. His 14-year tenure is the second-longest for a Kansas A.D., behind Allen’s 19 years. From 2001 until his death from injuries sustained in a bicycle accident in June of 2009, Frederick taught in KU’s Department of Health, Sport and Exercise Science in the School of Education, and for two years served as department chair. He specialized in sport management, sport law and sport facilities.
In 2001 Kansas Athletics named its Senior Scholar-Athlete Awards after Frederick. The awards are presented annually to the top male and female senior scholar-athletes at KU.
Under the direction of Frederick, Kansas teams won 32 conference championships, a national title in men’s basketball in 1988 and produced 41 Academic All-Americans. During the 1992-93 academic year, Kansas became the first school to win a football bowl game, reach the men’s basketball Final Four and advance to the baseball College World Series in the same school year.
While KU’s A.D., Frederick served as the chair of the prestigious NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Committee in 1995 and 1996.
Frederick oversaw more than $50 million in facilities upgrades in his final 10 years as athletics director, including a $35-million renovation of Memorial Stadium and Allen Fieldhouse.
A Jayhawk for most of his career, Frederick earned all three of his degrees from KU: a bachelor’s degree in chemistry in 1962, a master’s degree in secondary school administration in 1964 and his doctorate degree in educational administration in 1984. He served as director of the Williams Education Fund at KU from 1981-85. Prior to becoming KU athletics director, Frederick served in the same position at Illinois State from 1985-87.
Frederick played basketball at Kansas in 1960-61 under head coach Dick Harp. He was a KU assistant basketball coach under Harp from 1963-64 and later under Ted Owens in 1971-72.
He coached basketball at Rich Central High School in Illinois from 1964-66, Russell High School in Kansas from 1966-70, Coffeyville Community College from 1970-71 and Lawrence High School from 1977-81. He was an assistant coach at Brigham Young University from 1972-75 and Stanford University from 1975-77.
In 2001 Frederick received the National Invitation Tournament Distinguished Service Award. In 1997 the National Association of Basketball Coaches presented him with the Cliff Wells Appreciation Award for outstanding contributions to college basketball. That same year he was honored with the Buford M. Watson Public Service Award by the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce. The NIT named him Man of the Year in 1996.
Frederick File
Basketball Coaching Career
1962-64 – Graduate assistant coach, Kansas
1964-66 – Assistant coach, Rich Central (Ill.) High School
1966-70 – Head coach Russell (Kan.) High School
1970-71 – Head coach Coffeyville (Kan.) Junior College
1971-72 – Assistant coach, Kansas
1972-75 – Assistant coach, Brigham Young
1977-81 – Head coach, Lawrence (Kan.) High School
Administration Career
1981-85 – Assistant AD – Williams Education Fund, Kansas
1985-87 – Athletics Director, Illinois State
1987-2001 – Athletics Director, Kansas
2001-09 – Assistant Professor, Health, Sport and Exercise Science
Professional Organizations
Division I Men’s Basketball Committee, 1991-96 (chair in 1995 and 1996)
USA Basketball Select Team Committee, 1992-96
National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics
NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics
American Football Coaches Association
National Association of Basketball Coaches Committee on Basketball Issues
Playing Career
1960-61 – Basketball walk-on at Kansas
Education
Bachelor’s in chemistry, Kansas, 1962
Masters in education, Kansas, 1964
Doctorate in education, Kansas, 1984
Personal
Born – March 4, 1940 in Kirkwood, Mo.
Died – June 12, 2009 in Lawrence, Kan. at the age of 69
Wife – Margey
Sons – Brian, Brad, Mark and Chris
Dick Harp
After gaining a wealth of knowledge as Phog Allen’s understudy, Harp became the Kansas basketball head coach from 1956-64. Harp compiled a 121-82 record in those eight seasons and led the Jayhawks to two conference titles and two NCAA tournament berths. In 1957, the Jayhawks captured the Midwest Regional and made it to the finals, only to be stopped by North Carolina in a memorable 54-53 loss in triple overtime in Kansas City, Mo. Under Harp’s guidance, Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Bridges achieved All-American status.
Harp had served as Phog Allen’s assistant for eight seasons before taking over for Allen in 1956. Prior to that, Harp was head coach for two seasons at William Jewell College in Liberty, Mo. Harp played basketball at KU, lettering from 1938-40 and was one of the starting guards on the 1940 team that lost to Indiana in the NCAA finals.
Harp served as the director of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes for 13 years after leaving the Jayhawks. Harp is one of only five people to have played and coached in an NCAA title game. He served as an assistant coach at North Carolina for Dean Smith from 1986-89.
Harp died on March 18, 2000, at the age of 81.
Coaching Career
1947-49 – Head coach, William Jewell (Mo.) College
1949-56 – Assistant coach, Kansas
1956-64 – Head coach, Kansas
1986-89 – Assistant coach, North Carolina
