Parkside Athletics

Will Cranford joins the Ranger coaching staff in the fall of 2014 as the program's top assistant coach. A former Ranger student-athlete, Cranford joins the coaching staff after working in the University's admissions office.
 
Cranford joins the program in a full-time capacity after spending the previous year as an admissions counselor for the University. While working in admissions, he was responsible for recruiting prospects from Illinois, Madison, Janesville and Beloit in addition to serving as a liaison between the admissions office and the athletic department. During this time, Cranford additionally served as a volunteer assistant with the Rangers, creating workouts and lifting routines while working with the horizontal jumps, sprints and hurdles. While a volunteer assistant, the Rangers had two athletes finish in the top five at the 2014 GLVC Outdoor Championships in addition to coaching 2014 GLVC Indoor Triple Jump Champion Jeremy Robinson.
 
A 2013 UW-Parkside graduate, Cranford additionally served as a game management intern during the 2012-2013 academic year while serving as a youth development intern and mentor at the Boys & Girls Club of Kenosha.
 
As a collegian, Cranford competed as a sprinter, jumper, and hurdler for the Rangers, leaving his mark as a student-athlete with school records in the 55- and 60-meter hurdles in addition to the 110-meter hurdles. The Detroit, Michigan native was a runner-up at the 2013 Great Lakes Valley Conference Outdoor Championships in the 110-meter hurdles, securing All-Conference accolades.
 
Prior to UW-Parkside, Cranford attended Western State College of Colorado, finishing ninth at the NCAA Division II Indoor Championships in the 60-meter hurdles while winning the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championship in the 110-meter hurdles in 2011.
 
Cranford graduated from UW-Parkside in May of 2013 with a bachelor's degree in sport management.