Paul Goebel retires as Memphis men's tennis coach after 19 seasons, second-most wins
One of the most successful tennis coaches in Memphis Tigers history has called it a career. Paul Goebel announced Wednesday he is retiring from coaching tennis, following a 24-year stint at Memphis that included 19 as head coach.
"Thank you Memphis for 24 fantastic years. The time has come to make a change in my life," Goebel said in a release. "I want to say thank you to Tiger Nation for your continued support day in and day out. It has also been an honor to work with so many great people in our athletic department over the years.
"I have made lifelong friends and I appreciate the effort that so many have made in creating an atmosphere that makes Memphis Athletics a special place to work."
Goebel brought national prominence to the tennis program through his success at recruiting internationally during his 19 years as head coach. He reached 242 career wins, second all-time in the program and helped the Tigers rank in Top-50 nationally eight times during his tenure.
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He was an assistant for five years before he took over in 2004. He led the Tigers to nine NCAA Tournament appearances and won a Conference-USA conference title in 2012 — one of his three conference championship appearances as a coach.
In the 2012-13 season, Goebel led Memphis to a Top-20 ranking, the highest ever for the men's tennis program, and posted a 16-8 record during that season, defeating BYU and Ole Miss to reach the third round of the NCAA Tournament.
"Congratulations to Coach Goebel on a well-deserved retirement," University of Memphis Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Laird Veatch said in a release.
"He is also a tremendous supporter of every other sport program and student-athlete at the University of Memphis, and he has made an impact on many fellow coaches and administrators as well. We thank Paul for his many contributions to Memphis Athletics and wish him, his wife, Shelly, and children all the best."
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis men's tennis coach Paul Goebel retires after 19 seasons
