Stanely's return to track was news to Linehan

ST. LOUIS - When St. Louis Rams wide receiver Derek Stanley asked coach Scott Linehan for permission to return to school this spring to continue work on his degree, he left out one detail.

That is, that he also planned to rejoin the track and field team at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

"I just figured a good way to get back in shape and get my speed back would be to run track," said Stanley, a seventh-round draft pick last year. "Doing track workouts and sprint workouts are essentially the same things I'd be doing back in St. Louis" during offseason drills.

Stanley's last final exam is Friday; he's scheduled to return to Rams Park on Monday. There, he and Linehan will have a little talk.

"I'll sit down and visit with him," Linehan said. "He and I never discussed (Stanley running track); this is the first I've heard of it. That's something that probably won't be happening many times again."

Professional teams are extremely careful about protecting their investments and want to be fully aware of their players' offseason exploits. Had Stanley blown out a knee during the track season, his NFL career could have been derailed.

Still, Linehan wasn't particularly angry with Stanley. "He's a good kid, a young guy who probably didn't even know any better," Linehan said.

Whitewater coach Darren Schneider, a St. Louis native and former Lafayette High coach, also was surprised when Stanley laced up his track spikes again.

"Obviously, getting drafted and playing for the Rams is really a special thing, a great achievement," Schneider said. "Being at that level, I kind of expected it would take most, if not all, of his attention. But " I think he had a little unfinished business track-wise, some things he wanted to accomplish."

Stanley's presence on the squad was uplifting, Schneider stressed. "It was really exciting for our guys to have him return," he said. "Some of the guys knew him from previous teams, but for our freshmen, it was an unbelievable experience to have an NFL player on your team. It was really a special situation."

Both teammates and his opponents peppered him with queries. "A lot of people asked me what (the NFL) was like," he said. "You get some interesting questions."

Although Stanley also ran sprints, long jumping and triple jumping "are his forte, without a doubt," Schneider said. Whitewater finished seventh in the NCAA Division III indoor championships March 14-15, and Stanley earned All-America status by placing sixth in the long jump.