MOBILE, Ala. – There are only three individuals in the University of South Alabama's athletic history who can own up to the accomplishment of being an All-American in three different years.

Rory White received All-American honors from Basketball Weekly in the years of 1980, '81, and '82. Heath Slocum followed in 1994, '95, and '96 with recognition from the Collegiate Golf Foundation.

This year, Renaldo Frechou from the Jaguar men's track and field program joined that select group.

"At first when I came to South Alabama I didn't understand the meaning of it," he said.  "Back home if you want to be recognized you have to be top three, but now that I know the meaning it actually means a lot to me."

Looking back on his success, what is remarkable to consider is that he was not on the radar of the Jaguar coaching staff in the recruiting process. In fact, he had little to no opportunities to compete in college.

"I met Renaldo at a barbeque; he came up to me and said he would like to come to the United States," said Jaguar head coach Paul Brueske.  "I asked him what he did, he told me he threw the hammer — his marks were solid — and we started communicating from there."

"My high school coach and his family [including future member of the women's program Marina Swanepoel] were hosting a barbeque; and that is where we met and then I begin the admissions process."

Frechou lettered at Paarl [South Africa] Boys High School in track, winning silver at nationals in the hammer throw and bronze at the under-20 nationals. He also lettered in rugby and tennis as well as cricket, but stuck with one sport. Specifically one event – the hammer throw.

"When I started the hammer throw I have liked it since day one," Frechou said. "For the shot put others were bigger and I was sort of a late bloomer. I also did discus, but my coach told me to choose between that or hammer throw. For the discus you have to be wide and flat, the hammer is tight and high. I chose hammer throw."

Frechou may not have known much about competing at the NCAA Division I level, but he wasted little time in finding success.  He earned victories at the Jaguar Opener, the Battle of I-65 and Auburn's Tiger Classic, where he had a 63.87m mark. He was all-conference after winning the event at the Sun Belt Championship. He then finished 11th in the discipline at the NCAA East Region Preliminary Championship to move on to the NCAA meet.

And it was on the biggest stage of the season where he would record that year's best throw. Frechou placed seventh at the NCAA Championship with a 67.64m mark that broke the Sun Belt record by over two meters.

Coming from South Africa, Frechou not only needed to adjust to the culture of a foreign country but to a level of competition that was completely different.

"The level of competition is much higher here; nearly every meet here was the same level of competition as our [South Africa] nationals," he explained.

Having handled the changes in a reasonable fashion, Frechou would go on and repeat as a first team All-American the next season with even better marks.  At eight of nine regular season meets he walked away with victory. He was a two-time conference male field athlete of the week with both honors coming after competing at events on back-to-back days. Frechou claimed the Sun Belt championship again – picking up all-league honors – with a school-record throw of 69.67m on his final attempt.
 
He qualified for the NCAA meet by placing fifth at the NCAA East Regional Preliminary Round. Frechou would finish fifth at the NCAA Championship meet with a 68.64m throw, which was one meter more than the previous year.

"I knew he was going to be very competitive at the conference level," said Brueske. "When he came in he got in a structured training program and made very good improvements.  For a guy who has been throwing as long as he has, to come in and go from 64 to nearly 70 meters is a good improvement; I was very pleased with his progress, but pleasantly surprised by how well he did on the national level."

"I was obsessed with just being better than I was yesterday," Frechou said. "I tried building every day during the season because my end goal was to be as good as I possibly could."

Although he aspired to constantly improve, this season — his last at the collegiate level — saw him come up just shy of his previous standards.  He still recorded three wins during the regular season and earned his third consecutive victory in the event at the Sun Belt meet, and after coming in 16th place at the national championship was a second-team All-American.

Who's to say is that so bad?

"Looking at the season I didn't think I would go to nationals, but I planned to do what I always did — take it one step at a time, and push myself every day," Frechou said. "In the moment I looked at it that although I was not first-team, I am still second-team and have no reason to complain."

While the numbers Frechou has posted may seem like child's play, his inability to play with a children's toy is one of reasons he now ranks among the best field competitors in school history.

"The first time I saw the hammer throw I was very little; I believe the 2004 Olympics was when I saw the winners and it interested me," said Frechou. "The funny thing is I could not yo-yo when I was younger, but I could swing it around my head. My older brothers would tease me."

While the two may have teased him teased him about not being able to yo-yo, they both played professional tennis and were able to serve as good examples to follow as Renaldo learned about competition. In due time the incorrect motion of Frechou swinging the yo-yo around his head would turn into the technique for the hammer throw. But it is a long trek from childhood inability to three-time All-American.

His success at the national level in South Africa planted the seed for the possibility, but Frechou was not entirely certain he would reach the level he has.

"To a point I did. There is always that hope, but I am still surprised to have done this much," he said. "It means more than I can say with words, because it has opened so many doors for me. It was more than what I would've thought."

USA's previous two three-time All-Americans both went on to the professional level in their sports. White played five seasons in the NBA, while Slocum has competed on the PGA Tour since 2001.
 
In the future, it would be a dream for Frechou to compete beyond the collegiate level too. "I want to compete in the future. In my event there is not much money behind it but that is the main goal," he said. "That is why I took the chance to come to America."
 
When Frechou stops competing, he would like to share what he has learned from the sport of track and field and become a coach. He hopes to one day return to the United States to show his appreciation of what the country and South Alabama has done for him.

Regardless of any future results, Frechou has earned a select spot in the history of South Alabama athletics.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

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