BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Beau Redstone is coming home.
The former Cal State Bakersfield forward and program's all-time rebounding leader has been named general manager of the Roadrunners men's basketball program — a newly created position — reuniting him with new head coach Todd Lee.
Redstone said the opportunity grew organically out of a conversation with Lee, who reached out a couple of months ago about his interest in the head coaching job.
"I just said, you know, if he, if Todd, if you got the job, I'd help and support you," Redstone said.
Lee was previously an assistant coach under former CSUB head coach Pat Douglass.
Redstone said Lee's vision for the program and his connection to Bakersfield made the decision easy.
"Some of my greatest years of memories are as a player for Cal State Bakersfield," Redstone said. "When you see your university struggling and you wanna jump back in and make a difference, I just felt like the timing was perfect. I believe in his leadership. I believe in the direction we're going."
As GM, Redstone said his priorities center on rebuilding the program's relationship with the Bakersfield community — something he believes has eroded in recent years.
"The runners have disconnected with the community a little bit," Redstone said. "You gotta be supportive, and you gotta get out there, and that's something that we always did. I'd really like to see Cal State get back to that connectivity with the community."
Redstone said community engagement was a cornerstone of the program's success during his playing days, when the Roadrunners built a devoted fanbase and went on to win back-to-back Division II national championships, including an undefeated season.
"We were really involved in the community. We did so many things within the community, and we enjoyed doing that, and our team grew closer together because of that," Redstone said. "When it came game time, man, everybody showed up. Seats get harder to get. It becomes pretty special."
He said reconnecting with fans and supporters — including bringing them closer to the team through practice access and locker room visits — is central to his role.
"I really wanna just continue to work with getting our coaches, our players out in the community, just really manifesting those relationships again," Redstone said. "Where they're buying in, and their attachment to the program becomes important to them — I think once we start doing that, we start winning again."
Fundraising and NIL support are also part of Redstone's responsibilities as the program looks to compete in the transfer portal era.
"In these days of NIL, you gotta get some players. You have to pay for some guys to get them out here, and that's just part of the world we live in," Redstone said. "Whether people like it or not, it's just the reality of what we have to do."
Redstone said the roster Lee has assembled so far gives him confidence heading into the season.
"The guys we've compiled so far are just absolutely tough, blue-collar guys that are great human beings. They're gonna work hard, and those are Bakersfield-type guys," Redstone said. "Coach Lee's pretty good about picking guys that are gonna represent Bakersfield in that way — guys that are gonna fight till the end."
With the season still months away, Redstone said the excitement is already building.
"Here we are in May. I'm ready to get to October, November," Redstone said. "I'm pretty excited about it. But a lot of work to do."
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
Stay in Touch with Us Anytime, Anywhere:
