West Texas native Fred Rike, associate head coach at the University of North Texas for the past five seasons, on Sunday, April 2, became the fourth men's basketball coach in the history of Angelo State University.
ASU Athletic Director Kathleen Brasfield announced Rike's appointment, effective immediately, at an afternoon news conference in ASU Athletics Department offices in the Junell Center.
“Fred's reputation for solid basketball knowledge, commitment to academic achievement and a knack for molding young men into quality people certainly is impressive,” Brasfield said. “His experience at various levels, his ties to the Lone Star Conference and to West Texas, his knowledge of Texas as a recruiting base ? all of those things certainly were attractive.”
Rike has both assistant and head coaching experience at Tyler Junior College (TJC) and has held assistant coaching positions at Louisiana Tech, University of Memphis and Georgia State University before moving to UNT. A standout prep player at Tulia High School, he played at TJC and Sam Houston State before ending his playing career at West Texas State University, now West Texas A&M.
Brasfield said, “We believe Fred will build a highly-competitive basketball program by recruiting quality student-athletes, supporting their academic pursuits, retaining players who will set a high standard for younger players and establishing discipline and accountability for those participating in the program.”
Rike, who will also serve as a lecturer in the ASU Kinesiology Department, was selected from a pool of 96 applicants for the position left open by the resignation of Joe Esposito. Rike will be looked upon to turn around a Ram program that just completed its third straight losing season, going 8-19 overall and 0-12 in Lone Star Conference South Division play.
“There is no doubt that we can be competitive on a national level at Angelo State,” Rike said. “I really wanted to be a head coach again, but not just anywhere. Things had to fit. I want to win and win big. The other coaches here have shown that you can. They have set the bar high.”
Rike comes to ASU after spending the past five seasons as UNT's associate head coach. During his time with the Mean Green, Rike helped guide the program to its best non-league start in 30 years during the 2004-05 season, an accomplishment that lead to the nation's No. 29-ranked recruiting class in 2006.
“The people here at Angelo State are West Texas friendly,” said Rike. “Coach Brasfield and President Hindman, everybody, made me feel right at home. The community of San Angelo is a great place to raise family. I'm from the ?Big Country' and this is a great homecoming.”
A native of Haskell, Rike will be returning to his roots in West Texas. He began his coaching career in 1990 as an assistant coach at TJC, where the Apaches claimed both the Texas Eastern Athletic Conference (TEAC) and Region XIV championship, advancing to the NJCAA National Tournament in 1993. The next year, Rike made his first move to NCAA Division I, taking a position as an assistant coach at Louisiana Tech University. He stayed at Louisiana Tech for one season before returning to TJC to take over the head coaching role.
Upon his return to Tyler, Rike's squad quickly found success, posting a 27-9 record in 1995-96 and earning conference and region titles en route to another NJCAA playoff berth. Rike was named the TEAC and Region XIV Coach of the Year in just his second season as a head coach. The next year, Rike's Apaches were ranked No. 1 in the national by several publications, including Dick Vitale, Street & Smith and College Sports Review.
After three seasons as the head coach at TJC, where he posted a 61-33 record, Rike returned to NCAA DI when he was named an assistant coach at the University of Memphis along side current UNT head coach Johnny Jones. The two were assistants on the Tigers' coaching staff for two seasons before Jones was named Memphis' interim head coach prior to the 1999-2000 campaign. Immediately, Rike was promoted to associate head coach for the Tigers.
In his first season at Memphis, Rike was a key figure in the Tigers' recruiting class that was ranked No. 7 in the nation. The squad went on to the championship of the North Division of Conference USA and advanced to the second round of the NIT. After his three successful years at Memphis, Rike spent the 2000-01 season as an assistant coach at Georgia State University under legendary coach Charles “Lefty” Driesell before reuniting with Jones at UNT. During his season at GSU, the Panthers boasted a 29-5 record and earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament, where they advanced to the second round.
“I've traveled from coast to coast as a coach and a player and have not seen a better facility at the Division II level than the Junell Center/Stephens Arena,” continued Rike. “The facilities here are first class. I can't wait to show them to our first recruit. I want our team to be something the people of San Angelo can be proud. We will be ?blue collar' with a pressure defense and play an up-tempo style that is baseline to baseline for forty minutes. I believe guys want to play this way and this style of play is fun to watch.”
A standout prep player at Tulia High School, Rike began his collegiate playing career at TJC, where he was named all-conference after his sophomore season. He then spent one season at Sam Houston State University before transferring to West Texas State University for his senior year. Rike earned his bachelor's degree in physical education from West Texas State in 1989 and two years later earned his master's degree in health and kinesiology at the University of Texas at Tyler.
“He is a family man with good values and whose references always talk about his being a good man,” continued Brasfield. “We believe Fred will support the high standards set by other coaches on the ASU staff and that he will be a team player in every sense of the word. We look forward to his accomplishments and to the success of the Ram basketball team.”
Rike and his wife, Kimberley, are the parents of two daughters: Allie Katherine, 10, and Jessie Kay, 7.
