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In his 15th year as the head coach of the Red Raiders, Tim Siegel has continued to mold the team to be one of the top competitors in the Big 12 Conference and the nation. He achieves this by making a commitment to recruit the best players, hire the best assistants, and demand 100 percent on and off the court. Siegel is very intense and extremely hard working, and loves coaching and teaching his players. He wants to continue to bring in talented players, but is much more interested in recruiting student-athletes who work hard and come to play every day. Siegel's tenure with the men's tennis program began in 1993. Since taking over, the men's team has attained high levels of success on the national stage. Six of the past 13 seasons the men's team has reached the NCAA Tournament and has been included among the top 30 teams in the nation, as well as having individual players ranked in the top 100. Last season Siegel coached his team to a 14-10 overall record, 2-4 and tied for fourth in the Big 12. The team ended the season ranked 33, but reached as high as 22 in the ITA national polls in mid-March. After another successful regular season finish, Siegel and his Red Raiders returned to the NCAA Tournament after narrowly missing out in 2006. The team traveled to the UCLA regionals in Los Angeles where they advanced to the second round after upsetting Virginia Commonweath, 4-1. In the second round, unfortunately, the No. 33 Red Raiders fell to the No. 9 Bruins, 4-0. His team has maintained a 3.0 GPA or higher since the fall of 1999 with 20 players being named to the Academic All-Big 12 team. Possibly his most successful campaign as a coach to date, in 2005 Siegel was named Big 12 Coach of the Year and Co-Region Coach of the year by his peers. He led the Red and Black to the NCAA Sweet 16, recording the program's first post-season win. Siegel went above and beyond, leading Tech to victories over TCU and Army before falling to No. 4 Ole Miss. Bojan Szumanksi, an All-Big 12 Singles selection, and Radek Nijaki, the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, earned bids to the NCAA Singles Championship. Additionally, Szumanksi and Michael Innerebner earned Academic All-American honors for their efforts in the classroom. A native of New Orleans, La., Siegel began his collegiate tennis career at the University of Arkansas. A 1986 graduate of Arkansas, Siegel was a two-time All-American and a three-time All-Southwest Conference singles champion. Siegel played professional tennis and reached a top 100 world ranking in doubles. He teamed with Jimmy Arias to reach the quarterfinals at the U.S. Clay Court Championships, and was a semifinalist in Brisbane, Bologna, and Florence. He also reached the third round of doubles at the U.S. Open, Australian Open and the second round of Wimbledon. A few of his big wins include victories over John Lloyd-Paul McNamee, Ivan Lendl-Bill Scanlon and Yannick Noah-Paul Annacone. After his graduation from Arkansas, Siegel began his coaching career with the Razorbacks where he served as an assistant coach for his alma mater. In 1990, Siegel received his first head coaching position at SMU where he served as women's head coach and men's assistant coach. In his two years at SMU, Siegel led the Lady Mustangs to a 28-23 record. Siegel also has worked as a coach on the professional level, coaching for tour pros, including Joey Rive, Robert Seguso and Richey Reneberg. During the past 15 years as the men's head coach, Siegel has compiled a 194-166 record. Siegel has done an outstanding job recruiting top athletes, locally, nationally and internationally, and has provided the team with the leadership and experience needed to be successful. He brings dedication and excitement to the program. Siegel and his wife, Jenny, reside in Lubbock with his daughter Alex, and their children Kate, Ellie, and Luke. In addition to coaching, Siegel's favorite hobby is being a dad to his four children. When he is not found at the courts, he spends his time with loving wife and amazing kids. |
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