West Liberty University Athletics

    An All-West Virginia Conference linebacker on the hilltop during the early 1960s, Clarence R. "Dick" Dei was a highly-successful educator and coach in the Ohio Valley for more than three decades.
    Dei was a team captain and defensive stalwart on West Liberty's 1963 West Virginia Conference championship football team, earning first-team All-WVIAC honors for his sideline-to-sideline exploits.
    The 1964 West Liberty graduate served as an assistant football coach at Bellaire and Martins Ferry high schools before taking the head coaching reins at Adena (Ohio) and Wheeling Park. He was also an assistant coach on Bethany College's 1980 NCAA Division III playoff squad.
    Dei’s name was synonymous with high school track in the Ohio Valley. The 2-time West Virginia High School Coach of the Year coached 22 High School All-Americans while guiding Wheeling Park to three state track titles and five state runner-up finishes. In 13 years as head coach, Dei’s teams lost only two dual meets and won nine West Virginia Regional Championships.