Steve Rivers, a former administrator and football coach in the Salina, Bennington and Junction City school districts and standout player at Kansas Wesleyan, has joined the KWU coaching staff.
Rivers will serve as Director of High School Relations and will be an offensive assistant for first-year head coach Matt Middleton.
Rivers played running back for three seasons (1982-84) at Wesleyan under coach Jon Bingesser and received a degree in health and physical education in 1985. The Coyotes shared the 1982 Kansas Conference title with Southwestern (7-1) winning their last seven games and finishing 8-2. Rivers received all-conference honors.
The team was inducted into the Jerry Jones KWU Coyote Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007.
“Steve is going to really help us bridge a gap with the local high schools in our area with all his connections as a longtime coach and principal and the relationships he has,” Middleton said. “I think it’s super important to do our very best to get as many local kids as we possibly can and he’s the perfect person to be able to get the relationships we need to get. He’ll visit with guidance counselors to get transcripts and things like that. He’ll build that network of schools for us to be able to start recruiting super early and have everything in place. It puts us way ahead of the game.”
“I was really happy to hear that they were wanting to try to keep a lot of the local kids here,” Rivers said. “I’m looking forward to trying to bridge the gap and bring in community and surrounding area coaches and players to be a part of Kansas Wesleyan University and helping my alma mater. It’s been a while since I’ve been on the field as far as coaching is concerned. However, I think when it comes to football it’s kind of the same. You can know X’s and O’s, you can know schemes, but it comes right down to run, block and tackle and whoever does that the best wins games.”
Rivers initially was defensive coordinator at Salina Central from 1987-92 under legendary coach Marvin Diener. The Mustangs won the 1993 Class 5A state championship and were runners-up in 1989.
His administrative career began in 1994 when he was hired as an assistant principal at Junction City High School. He returned to Central in 1995 and spent 13 years as an assistant principal before becoming principal at Lakewood Middle School. He returned to the classroom and football field at Salina South High School as coach of the Cougars’ freshman team for two seasons under former coach Sam Sellers.
Rivers was then principal at Bennington High School for four years until his retirement. He worked for the city of Salina for two years serving as Community Relations Supervisor and ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) Coordinator and was a member of the KWU Board of Trustees.
“We’re thrilled to announce the addition of coach Steve Rivers to the Kansas Wesleyan University football staff,” Athletic Director Miguel Paredes said. “Bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience coach Rivers is no stranger to KWU. As an alumnus his passion for the program runs deep. His return is more than just a coaching hire, it’s a homecoming. Coach Rivers’ ability to share his personal journey and testimony with current and future Coyotes will be invaluable in strengthening our program’s tradition and legacy. Welcome back Coach Rivers – let’s keep the tradition moving forward.”
“This is a monumental hire for KWU and the Coyote football program,” said Ken Oliver, Executive Vice President for Advancement and University Operations. “Steve’s knowledge and experience throughout his life and career will help us support our student athletes and help them excel on and off the field.”
Rivers, who hails from Augusta, Ga., began his playing career at St. Mary of the Plains College in Dodge City and knew of KWU as the schools were KCAC members. He transferred after his freshman year.
“I found I knew a lot about athletics, God gave me a great ability to play athletics, and I was an all-conference player but I didn’t have a clue about studying so I found myself being dismissed from school,” Rivers said. “Dr. Dave Fancher (former KWU faculty member) gave me an opportunity to get my act together. He told me, ‘You’ve got a semester to get your GPA up to 2.5 and if you don’t, we’ll dismiss you from here as well,’ so I changed some things in my life. By the time I finished I was part of the conference championship team and was not only an all-conference player but academic all-conference as well.”
Rivers said his message to prospective Coyotes is fourfold.
“Integrity, hard work, dedication and perseverance,” he said. “Sticking to it – perseverance – because sometimes we’re given trials, we’re given tests, and we need to learn how to persevere through those things. Academically you need to stay in there because here’s the bottom line: when you can’t run for another touchdown, score another 3-point shot, hit another home run, break the tape at the finish line first, you’ve still got to support yourself and your family and be a productive citizen in your community.”
