TUCSON, Ariz. – The University of Arizona has named Clancy Shields its new head men's tennis coach, Director of Athletics Greg Byrne announced on Friday. Shields spent the previous three seasons as the head coach at Utah State, where he led the Aggies to the 2016 Mountain West title and was named Wilson/ITA Mountain Region Coach of the Year and MWC Coach of the Year.
“We're excited to add Clancy to our roster of coaches,” Byrne said. “His track record as a coach and player are extremely attractive, and when you combine that with his knowledge of tennis in the western region of the United States, we felt he was the perfect person to lead our men's tennis program. He's produced championship-level tennis at each of his stops and we think he can bring that kind of competitiveness to Tucson.”
Shields helped take a USU program that won nine matches in his first year to one that set school records for victories in both his second (18) and third (21) seasons. The Aggies increased their national relevance under his tutelage as they climbed as high as No. 62 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings during Shields' second season, which was a program record, before they reached No. 56 last season. In addition, Shields mentored four All-Mountain West performers and the 2016 Mountain West Player of the Year during his tenure.
"I am overjoyed to join the Wildcat family and lead the men's tennis program at the University of Arizona,” Shields stated. “I look forward to working with our student-athletes, the fantastic athletics department, and the Tucson community. The Arizona brand is one of the best in the country, and I believe our tennis program will be competing with the very best shortly. I want to thank Greg Byrne and his staff for this opportunity and their support throughout this process. I look forward to rolling up my sleeves and getting to work."
Off the court at USU, Shields helped proctor nine Academic All-Mountain West honorees and four Mountain West Scholar-Athletes, who are recognized for maintaining at least a 3.5 GPA, during his first two seasons (2015-16 data not available). In addition, the Aggies were named an ITA All-Academic team in 2014.
Prior to his time at USU, Shields served as an assistant coach at Boise State from 2010-13, helping the Broncos to back-to-back Mountain West Championships. The Broncos advanced to their third NCAA Tournament with Shields in 2013.
During his four years as an assistant at Boise State, Shields helped coach 10 players to all-conference recognition, including the 2013 Mountain West Player of the Year as well as a Western Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year honor. In 2013, Shields was instrumental in helping BSU sign the No. 11 recruiting class nationally.
As a student-athlete at Boise State, Shields was named the 2009 WAC Player of the Year and earned All-WAC first-team honors for both doubles and singles play seven times. He led the Broncos to three WAC titles (2006, '07, '09) and an NCAA Sweet 16 appearance. Shields was ranked as high as No. 17 in singles and No. 11 in doubles by the ITA.
A 2010 graduate of Boise State with a degree in kinesiology, Shields was a four-time Academic All-WAC honoree and a first-team Academic All-American in 2007.
