Legendary Georgia tennis coach Manny Diaz gets extension

ATHENS – At 68 years old, with a long, successful career behind him, Georgia’s Manuel Diaz could easily walk away and spend more time kicking back with his family on Lake Oconee. But there are a few things the Bulldogs’ legendary tennis coach would like to see through first.

There’s the new multi-million-dollar indoor tennis facility that’s about to be added to the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. Diaz has had a hand in helping UGA raise $12 million toward that project. The Bulldogs just christened a new $8 million outdoor stadium last year. There’s also the matter of those empty spots Diaz has maintained in the Bulldogs’ trophy room next to the Henry Feild Stadium courts. Diaz feels strongly that he could see them get filled soon.

If that happens, then perhaps he might still be around for the next item on his checklist. The NCAA tennis championships return to Athens, once known as the “Mecca of College Tennis,” in 2026.

For now, though, only 2025 is guaranteed for Diaz. He accepted a two-year contract extension and raise from Georgia Athletic Director Josh Brooks last week.

“Obviously, the bulk of my career is behind me, not in front of me,” said Diaz, who has been with the Bulldogs’ tennis program for 40 years, the past 34 as head coach. “I don’t think I can coach another 40 years; that’s no secret. But, at the same time, I’m not ready to slow down.”

Diaz said Thursday he has grown increasingly annoyed with incessant questions about when he was going to retire, whether it came from friends, players or recruiting prospects.

“I thought it was important, and Josh did, too, that people understood that we’re not going anywhere,” Diaz said. “We’re still motivated, I still have a burn and I’m excited about the direction of our program. More than anything, we needed that out there.”

Brooks agreed. He also raised Diaz’s annual salary by $50,000, to $325,000 a year. It was Diaz’s first increase since 2017.

It’s not like Georgia’s men’s tennis program has fallen off the map. In an off-year further complicated by a pandemic and injuries, the Bulldogs reached the quarterfinals of the NCAA championships this past season after a resounding upset of North Carolina.

Georgia, which finished ranked No. 10, lost an integral part of last year’s squad when All-American Tyler Zink transferred to Oklahoma State. But the Bulldogs added Notre Dame All-American Tristan McCormick and Tulane’s No. 1 singles player Hamish Stewart via the transfer portal. Georgia also signed the nation’s No. 5-ranked tennis prospect in Thomas Paulsell from Seattle and Miguel Perez Pena, Spain’s No. 2-ranked player.

“We’ve got some incredible kids who are extremely hard-working, and we have little or no distractions right now,” Diaz said. “The level of commitment of our players and coaches right now is sky high. The standard at Georgia is very, very high. The quarterfinals of the NCAA championships is disappointing. We wanted more.

“We’ve had a little tough luck the previous few years. But we’ve bounced back, and we’re pointed in the right direction, and that’s extremely motivating for me and our entire team.”

Diaz already is swimming in some pretty deep water. He is the SEC’s all-time winningest coach with 726 career victories and has led the Bulldogs to four NCAA championships. Perhaps even more impressive is that Georgia has won 21 SEC titles with Diaz at the helm.

That just got tougher. The SEC recently voted to accept Oklahoma and Texas into the conference. Both have historically powerful tennis programs. The Longhorns just finished fourth in the final NCAA tennis rankings, and their women’s team will be defending the national championship. Former Bulldog John Roddick used to coach the Sooners.

“That certainly adds to an already stacked conference,” Diaz said with a laugh. “It’s back to the ‘80s and ‘90s when we’d have five of the top eight teams in the country, or whatever. It definitely will be tougher, but we’re up for it.”