Billy Chadwick
Billy Chadwick, who begins his 30th year with the Rebel men's tennis program, ranks as one of the top collegiate head coaches and is recognized as one of the most successful head coaches in the history of Ole Miss sports.
For his contributions to the world of tennis as both a player and a coach, Chadwick was inducted into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in July of 2006. In January of 2011, Chadwick was inducted into the Mississippi Tennis Hall of Fame.
With his fifth SEC Championship in 2009, Chadwick now trails only legendary Ole Miss football coach John Vaught in SEC titles won. Vaught won six conference titles in 1947, 1954, 1955, 1960, 1962 and 1963.
A Mississippi native, Chadwick is one of only 10 active Division I men's tennis coaches to have led a team to the NCAA Championship Finals. Furthermore, he is one of only five active Division I coaches to have taken his team to three or more NCAA Final Fours. In his tenure at Ole Miss, he has led the Rebels to the NCAA Championships 20 times, and the Rebels have become a mainstay among the elite teams in the national rankings.
Chadwick began his coaching career at Ole Miss as the women's tennis coach, laying the foundation for the excellent team they have today. In 1982, he led the Lady Rebels to the SEC finals, AIAW Nationals and the program's first top 20 national ranking. In 1983, he took over the men's program, which at the time was last in the conference. In 29 years at the helm, the program has grown to unprecedented heights, winning SEC and NCAA Championships.
In 2012, the Rebels earned the program's 19th straight NCAA appearance, advanced to the Sweet Sixteen for the 16th time and finished the year ranked No. 14 in the nation. A record four players earned All-America honors and Nik Scholtz was named the SEC Freshman of the Year. Scholtz reached the NCAA singles quarterfinals, and twins Marcel Thiemann and Chris Thiemann advanced to the Final Four in doubles. Marcel joined Scholtz on the All-SEC first team, while Jonas Lutjen made the second team.
The 2011 season saw the Rebels earn the program's 18th NCAA appearance. Marcel Thiemann reached the NCAA singles quarterfinals for the second year in a row and earned All-America honors. Tucker Vorster joined Thiemann on the All-SEC team again.
Chadwick did perhaps his finest coaching job in 2010 as the Rebels lost four starters from the 2009 SEC Champion squad, including NCAA Champion Devin Britton. Furthermore, senior Kalle Norberg was lost for the year with an injury. The Rebels captured their ninth consecutive SEC West Championship, advanced to the semifinals of the SEC Tournament, made their 17th straight NCAA appearance and ended the year ranked No. 19 nationally. Individually, Marcel Thiemann became the 25th All-American reaching the NCAA singles quarterfinals.
The 2009 season was a remarkable year for the Rebels on and off the hard courts. Ole Miss won the overall SEC Championship after going undefeated, repeated as SEC Tournament Champion and won its eighth straight SEC West title. The Rebels finished the year ranked No. 4 in the nation, advancing to the NCAA Elite Eight. Mississippi native Devin Britton became the youngest player ever and the first Ole Miss player to win the NCAA Singles Championship. Individual honors included three All-Americans and five All-SEC selections. Chadwick was named the USPTA National College Coach of the Year and earned his third SEC Coach of the Year honor. Off the court, Bram ten Berge was named the Boyd McWhorter SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year as the top male student-athlete in the entire conference. He also received an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.
In 2008, the Rebels won the SEC West title and captured the SEC Tournament Championship. A record five Rebels were named to the All-SEC team. Ole Miss advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight for the eighth time and ended the year ranked No. 6 in the nation. Erling Tveit and Jonas Berg teamed up to advance to the finals of the NCAA Doubles Championship, while teammates Bram ten Berge and Matthias Wellermann reached the semifinals. All four earned All-America honors. Off the court, the Rebels received the ITA All-Academic Team Award (awarded to teams with a cumulative grade point average of 3.2 or higher on a 4.0 scale) for the second year in a row. Ole Miss was one of only two teams to finish the season ranked among the top 10 and receive this distinction.
In 2007, the Rebels advanced to the NCAA Final 16 and ended the season ranked No. 7 in the nation. The team captured the SEC West title, finished second overall in the conference standings and advanced to the SEC Tournament final. Erling Tveit, Eric Claesson and Robbye Poole earned All-America honors. Tveit and Poole were joined on the All-SEC team by Jonas Berg and Kalle Norberg. Off the court, the Rebels earned the prestigious ITA All-Academic Team Award. The Rebels were the only team in Division I men's tennis to finish the 2007 season ranked among the top 10 nationally and earn this distinction. Furthermore, they were one of only two teams in the top 20 (along with Duke) to achieve this accomplishment.
Chadwick has taken the Rebels to one of the country's top programs, and 1995 will be remembered as the benchmark year for the Rebels when they advanced to the finals of the NCAA Team Championships and claimed the NCAA Doubles Championship.
The Rebels built on the momentum, winning the program's first ever SEC Championship in 1996. The 1997 team became the second Rebel squad to advance to the NCAA Final Four and repeated as SEC Champions.
Ole Miss closed out the 20th century with an outstanding year in 1999, capturing the SEC regular season title, advancing to the NCAA Final Four for the third time, and ending the year ranked No. 3 in the nation.
The 21st century has seen the Rebels maintain their excellence on and off the court. Chadwick marked his 20th year with the program in 2002, as the Rebels captured the SEC Western Division title and advanced to the NCAA "Sweet Sixteen." The following year (2003), the Rebels repeated as SEC West Champions and advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight.
In 2004, the Rebels captured the overall SEC Championship and won their third consecutive SEC Western Division title.
The Rebels enjoyed one of the finest campaigns in the history of Ole Miss sports in 2005, advancing to the NCAA Final Four, capturing the overall SEC Championship for the second straight year as well as the SEC West title. The Rebels ended the year ranked No. 3 in the nation, marking the sixth top-five finish in 10 years. Catalin Gard spent 24 weeks at No.1 in the nation in singles and became the second Rebel to earn All-America honors three years, finishing with 112 career victories. Gard was joined on the All-SEC team by Erling Tveit and Karim Alayli.
The 2006 season saw the Rebels advance to the NCAA "Sweet Sixteen." The team captured its fifth consecutive SEC Western Division Championship, finished second in the overall SEC standings and advanced to the SEC Tournament final for the third time. Erling Tveit, an NCAA singles semifinalist, and Eric Claesson, earned All-America as well as All-SEC first team honors. Bram ten Berge was named the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, and Juan Pablo Di Cesare was a recipient of an SEC Community Service Postgraduate Scholarship. Both ten Berge and Di Cesare were named to the All-SEC second team.
Chadwick received SEC Coach of the Year honors in 1996, 2004 and 2009, and was selected ITA Southeast Region Coach of the Year in 2004 and 2008. He was also selected USPTA Southern Division Coach of the Year in 1995, 2002 and 2004 and Mississippi Tennis Association Coach of the Year in 1994, 1995 and 1997.
While Chadwick's teams have ranked among the nation's elite, they have been just as impressive off the court. The Rebels have been named an ITA All-Academic Team seven times, most recently in 2012. The Award is given to teams with a 3.2 cumulative grade point average or above on a 4.0 scale. In 2012, the Rebels won the Chancellor's Cup for the ninth year in a row. The cup is awarded each year to the men's and women's varsity sports with the highest cumulative grade point average.
Individually, the Rebels have had four national CoSIDA Academic All-Americans and numerous ITA Scholar-Athletes. Bram ten Berge became the second Rebel to win an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, joining former All-American Alex Hartman, who received one in 2003.
The Rebel mentor has coached 69 All-SEC picks, 94 Academic All-SEC honorees, 28 All-Americans and 25 Academic All-Americans.
Chadwick served as tournament director for the Boys' 18 National Interscholastic Championships, the only USTA national junior tournament held in Mississippi from 1993-97. He also served as tournament director for the 1993 and 1994 SkyTel National Collegiate Clay Court Championships, once part of the Collegiate Grand Slam and the largest ITA tournament that combined both men and women.
He also served as Intersectional Coach for the Southern Tennis Association, leading his team to a National Championship in 1988.
Chadwick holds a Masters in Business Administration (1981) from the University of Mississippi. He received his undergraduate degree in business from Belhaven College in 1974, where he was a four-year letterwinner in tennis. In 2000, Chadwick was inducted into the Belhaven Hall of Fame. In 1970, he was the Mississippi High School Singles Champion.
Following graduation from college, Chadwick participated in ITF/ATP Satellite events in the United States, Canada and Europe.
He is married to the former Julie Carr of Brookhaven, Miss. They have two sons, William Lyon, Jr., and Michael Carr. Chadwick has served as an Elder for the First Presbyterian Church in Oxford.
