Derrick Racine is in his 12th season as head coach of the West Florida men's and women's tennis teams. Since taking over the tennis programs from legendary head coach Ralph "Skeeter" Carson, Racine has continued the tradition and excellence of men's and women's tennis in Pensacola.
Racine, the three-time Division II Wilson/ITA Men's Tennis National Coach of the Year, immediately immersed himself and his team into the UWF and Pensacola tennis communities. Today, both the men's and women's teams enjoy widespread support.
Along with two national championships, Racine's men's teams have posted a 277-52 (.841) overall record, including a 138-18 (.885) mark over the last five seasons. Under Racine’s command, the men's team has won five Gulf South Conference titles and has finished no worse than 12th at the national tournament. The women's overall record under Racine is 249-79 (.759) with fifth GSC titles. They have finished in the top 10 in each season under Racine.
In 2008 Racine led the men's team to the national semifinals for the sixth consecutive season. West Florida men’s squad was ranked third for most of the season. The women's team overcame a 1-6 start to post a 17-11 overall record and reach not only the GSC Championships final, but also the quarterfinals of nationals.
Racine led the men's team to their first national championship in 2004. The Argonauts won a school record 33 matches en route to earning West Florida's third national championship with a 5-2 win over conference-rival Valdosta State. The Argonauts followed with a 30-2 record in 2005 and their second straight national championship after a 5-0 win over North Florida. West Florida became the seventh men's tennis team in Division II history to win consecutive national titles.
Since arriving in Pensacola in 1999, Racine has been named the Gulf South Conference Coach of the Year 11 times (five awards for the men's squad and six for the women's squad). He is a two-time Wilson/ITA South Region Coach of the Year.
Racine has produced five women and four men's NCAA Division II All-America players. Under Racine’s tutelage, Radovan Chrz was the 2001 ITA/NCAA Division II National Singles Champion. In 2006 Tammy Kevey and Mandy Septoe won the NCAA Division II doubles title at the ITA/National Small College Championships.
Eleven student-athletes (five men, six women) have been named the GSC Player of the Year, while six tennis players have earned GSC Freshman of the Year honors. A total of 37 men's and 39 women's tennis players have earned All-GSC honors since Racine's first season in 1999.
Racine began his head coaching career at Mobile in 1995. At Mobile, Racine posted an impressive 76-9 record with his men's squad and an equally impressive 77-6 record with the women. In 1996, his men's and women's teams were NAIA National Runners-up. In 1997, his men won the NAIA National Title and his women finished as National Runner-up. In 1998, his men's team once again challenged for the title and finished National runner-up. His women's squad finished the season ranked third. In 1997, Racine was named NAIA Coach of the Year. He coached twenty four NAIA All-Americans, four NAIA National Award winners, and nine NAIA Academic All-Americans.
From 1993 to 1995, Racine served as an assistant coach at his alma mater Valdosta State. Racine's collegiate tennis background stems back to the 1980s where he played at perennial junior college powerhouse Abraham Baldwin College in Georgia and GSC rival Valdosta State. He was nationally ranked and achieved All-American status in both singles and doubles.
Outside the calendar year, Racine has been running two summer camps at the University of West Florida main campus. In 2009, Racine is going to run the Nike Summer Tennis Camp hosted by UWF.
Outside the court, he earned a bachelor's degree from Valdosta State in finance in 1988 and later returned to earn his master's degree in physical education in 1993. Racine is married to the former Terrie Denham from Ashburn, Ga. The couple has three sons: Olin, Austin, and Luke.
