Chaney, Stringer return home to Cheyney

John Chaney remembered that C. Vivian Stringer was the first person he met after signing a contract in 1972 to coach the men's basketball team at what was then Cheyney State College.

Stringer was in her second year as the women's coach at the school, which is the nation's oldest historically black institution of higher learning.

"I remember seeing him with a big straw hat on," Stringer said with a laugh.

On Wednesday, the two Naismith Hall of Fame coaches were back where it all started. It was the first time in 30 years that Stringer and Chaney were together on the Cheyney campus. They participated in a celebration of a $20,000 scholarship awarded by Nike, which is to be divided among a group of business-school students at what is now Cheyney University.

"You enter here to learn, you leave here to serve," Chaney told some students who were on hand. "As you climb in life, you should lift."

Certainly, Chaney and Stringer have stood as standard-bearers for everything that is right about college athletics.

Stringer was 23 when she first encountered Chaney in the gym that day. The two very quickly formed a bond that has endured.

"He was willing to share his knowledge of basketball," Stringer said. "Coach was willing to sit down and break it down and explain it. He's been so giving of himself. He shared the floor with us, and a great friendship developed. He made it all happen for me."

"She was a young person who wanted to learn," said Chaney, now 78. "She was just a young person full of gusto, and she went after it every day. She was a marvelous student. And one of the things that Plato always said, 'The question is more important than the answer,' . . . she always had the question."

Stringer, who in 1982 guided Cheyney into the first NCAA women's Final Four, stepped up to Iowa in 1983. She just completed her 15th season at Rutgers - the Scarlet Knights have made the national semifinals twice during her tenure - and has an 844-295 career record at the three schools.

Chaney took Cheyney to a national championship in 1978. In 25 seasons, Chaney guided Temple to five NCAA tournament Elite Eight appearances. He retired in 2006 after 24 seasons with a 516-253 record.

The get-together Wednesday at Cheyney began with lunch. Then, the gathering moved a couple of blocks away to Cope Hall, where Stringer and Chaney enjoyed such success on the court that they attracted the attention of bigger programs.

"Did you all repair the leak in the roof?" Chaney wanted to know.

At Cope Hall, Stringer and Chaney were presented with plaques commemorating their contributions to Cheyney, and each spoke a few words.

"Coming here was the biggest move in my life," said Chaney, who previously coached at Simon Gratz.

"Coaching Cheyney gave me a chance to go on the national stage," Stringer said. "But it all started with Cheyney. You can go a lot of places, but you only have one home."