Shelton led the Gators to 11 winning seasons and the program’s first national title.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Bryan Shelton has stepped down<https://floridagators.com/news/2023/6/2/mens-tennis-open-letter-amessage-from-bryan-shelton.aspx> as the head coach of Florida men’s tennis to dedicate more time to his family, Director of Athletics Scott Stricklin announced on Friday.
In 11 seasons as Florida’s head coach, Shelton led the Gators to the program’s first national title in 2021, three Southeastern Conference Championships (2019, 2021 and 2022), two SEC Tournament Championships (2016 and 2022), 10 NCAA Tournament appearances, 28 ITA All-American honors and 31 All-SEC honors.
“We are so thankful for everything Bryan and his family have done to contribute to the University of Florida, the Gainesville community, Gator Nation and beyond,” said Stricklin. “Not only has Bryan delivered championships, but he did it with a high level of accountability and standards that he held himself and everyone in the program to every day. His record on and off the court speaks for itself and the impact he has had on the student athletes he has coached will last throughout their lifetime.”
A national search for the 11th head coach of the program will begin immediately.
This season, Bryan Shelton became the third head coach at UF and fastest in program history to win 200 matches. With an overall record of 211-83, Shelton’s .718 winning percentage at UF is the best in school history. Additionally, Shelton was 95-29 in SEC play and his team’s won 24 consecutive conference matches between 2021-22.
The four-time SEC Coach of the Year and two-time Wilson/ITA Coach of the Year is the only head coach in D1 college tennis history to win a women’s national title (2007 at Georgia Tech) and a men’s national championship. He is the 24th coach across all NCAA sports to lead two different programs to a national team title. Of those 24, Shelton is the fifth to coach a national championship team in a men’s AND women’s sport.
In back-to-back seasons under Shelton, Ben Shelton (2022) and Sam Riffice (2021) were crowned NCAA Singles Champions. It was the first time since 2005 and fourth time in over 40 years that the singles title was won by two different players of the same school in consecutive years.
While coaching at Florida, Shelton has produced nine former Gators currently competing on the professional tours: Andy Andrade, Oliver Crawford, Josh Goodger, Diego Hidalgo, Johannes Ingildsen, Alfredo Perez, Abdullah Shelbayh, Ben Shelton and Duarte Vale.
Fifty-four academic All-SEC honors were earned across 29 different Gators with Shelton at the helm. Additionally, the program posted a perfect 100 in the Graduation Success Rates in the Fall, while having the top male team cumulative GPA this spring for the eight term in a row with a 3.53 GPA.
THE BRYAN SHELTON FILE
Birthdate: Dec. 22, 1965
Hometown: Huntsville, Ala.
Education: Bachelor’s in Industrial Engineering, Georgia Tech University, 1988
Coaching Career
Overall: 438-191 (.696)
Record at Florida: 211-83 (.718)
NCAA Tournament at Florida: 23-9 (.719)
NCAA Tournament Round of 16s: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2012 at GT; 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022 at UF
NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals: 2007 and 2008 at GT; 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022 at UF
NCAA Tournament Semifinals: 2007 at GT; 2019 and 2021 at UF
NCAA Championships: 2007 at GT (Women’s), 2021 at UF (Men’s)
SEC Regular-Season: 95-29 (.766)
SEC Regular-Season Titles: 2019, 2021 and 2022
SEC Tournament: 16-8 (.667)
SEC Tournament Titles: 2016 and 2022
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