By Pete Ruden
Iowa men’s tennis head coach Ross Wilson has long had success in his sport. As a player at Ohio State, he was a two-time All-American, three-time national doubles champion, and a part of the first team in NCAA history to win national indoor championships back-to-back.
These days, Wilson is just as competitive, and he seeks to continue his success, this time as a coach.
After a couple years playing professional tennis in which he won three Pro Circuit titles, Wilson missed what the college game had to offer.
“I loved college tennis, and that was the best part of my life,” he said. “I felt like every year that I played at Ohio State, I loved it more and more. I thought I went into college liking tennis, and I thought I left college really loving it.”
In his playing days, Wilson exhibited a competitive attitude that helped motivate and guide him to new levels. Ten years after his senior year, it’s still very much a part of him.
“As a player, I was ultra-competitive,” Wilson said. “I obviously didn’t want to give up anything without a fight.”
Just as he sees it in himself, his team does as well. Junior Nils Hallestrand believes it’s one of his best traits and part of the reason Wilson is able to coach at a high level. He said that Wilson will always give the athletes his best, while expecting the best from them.
Wilson’s experience as an athlete plays a big role in his ability to coach as well. He has been through what his team is going through, so he knows what it takes to build and motivate them.
“I think he’s a really good coach because he was a successful college tennis player on a very successful team,” junior Josh Silverstein said. “He’s won the Big Ten championship multiple times at Ohio State, so he knows what it takes to be a successful college team because he’s been through it himself.”
Whether playing or coaching, Wilson loves tennis. As a player, he loved playing the game, but since he has moved on from those days, he said he has been obsessed with becoming the best coach that he can.
Though he has been out of playing for a few years now, Wilson said the aspect of playing that he misses is playing for his teammates and university.
Even though people can’t play forever, they can still stay involved with the game, and Wilson has been able to do that while continuing his success. He went on to coach juniors and a top-100 professional in the game before coaching at Kenyon College and San Diego. Even after everything he has done in his tennis career, Wilson finds himself back where he had the best years of his life.
“Nothing really gave me the fulfillment that I had when I was part of a university or a team,” Wilson said. “That’s really what brought me back to coaching college tennis.”
