Coach Masterclass – Coaching Roles & Transitions

The ITA Coach Masterclass collection of courses includes various topics — from fundraising to building your facility to team culture.

Coaching Roles & Transitions

College coaches will face several transitions and play different roles throughout their college coaching career. Although these transitions create a lot of excitement for the individual coach and the college program, they are not without their challenges. How coaches navigate these early transitional moments can help set themselves up for success for years to come.

The coaches in this chapter share their experiences to help you transition smoothly to your next role. They also provide many other coaching insights that you will find useful even if you have been coaching for several years.

How to Become a College Tennis Coach

The first transition a coach makes is from college or another profession into the college coaching world. There are numerous pathways to becoming a college coach, and each coach has a story. You can learn more about becoming a college coach by clicking on the “How to Become a College Coach” article in the resources section of this chapter. Darnesha Moore (Head Men’s & Women’s coach at Alcorn State University) began her career as a volunteer coach.

How to Become a College Tennis Coach with Darnesha Moore

Transitioning From Assistant Coach to Head Coach

Sean Maymi is the head men’s tennis coach at the University of Nebraska. He spent 11 years as an assistant coach at several programs before moving to a head coach role in 2018.

The Role of the Assistant Coach

Georgia Rose is the assistant women’s tennis coach at the University of Washington. She has also served as an assistant at the University of South Carolina and the University of Illinois. She concluded her playing career at Northwestern as a four-time All-American.

Head Coach of Both Men’s & Women’s Programs

Chase Hodges has led the Men’s & Women’s Tennis programs at Georgia Gwinnett since the program’s inception in 2013. He has coached at Drake, Georgia State, UNC Asheville, and Longwood. Chase has led the programs at Georgia Gwinnett to 11 NAIA National Titles and has been named the NAIA Coach of the Year 11 times.

Transitioning from Assistant Coach to Head Coach at the Same Program

Jordan Smith spent three years as the assistant women’s tennis coach at Kansas State University. In 2018, he was promoted to head coach after the previous head coach left for another university.

Transitioning from Male Player to Women’s Coach

Drake graduated from the University of Georgia in 2011. In 2012 he was named the women’s assistant coach at the University of Alabama. After one season, he returned to UGA as the assistant coach and, since that time, has been named ITA Regional Assistant Coach of the Year three times and has helped lead the program to a 159 – 35 record.

Resources

• Article: A Volunteer’s Guide
• Article: Becoming A College Tennis Coach
• Article: Assistant Coach Humility
• ITA Webinar: Building & Managing Your College Coaching Career
• 2019 ITA Convention: Climbing The Ladder Video Link – 2019 Coaches Convention
• 2020 ITA Convention: Acing the College Tennis Coaching Job Market – Katy Young Staudt (Ventura Partners)
• ITA Podcast: Volunteer to Assistant Coach – Marisa Arce, Depaul University Head Women’s Coach
• ITA Podcast: Time Management & Continuing Education – Pamela Rende, Arcadia Head Men’s & Women’s Coach
• ITA Podcast: Creating A New Path – Grant Chen, SMU Head Men’s Tennis Coach

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