Thomas Parsons

“I’ve never claimed to be the perfect coach; I don’t expect my kids to be perfect. I know that they’re going to make mistakes,” Coach Morgan said.

The Texas heat is beating down on the Arlington Tennis Center asphalt. The Wesleyan Rams tennis program has begun their practice with stretching before warming up by rallying back and forth with each other on the courts.

Wade Morgan, newly appointed head men’s and women’s tennis coach, assigns drills that help with techniques like serving, forehand and backhand. Each drill focuses on the painstaking details. His purpose: to test the character of the players. And, if the players don’t like it, they have the option to leave.  

How do the players respond? 

“LET’S GO RAMS,” Sergio Flores exclaimed. 

“LET’S GO RAMSSSS,” the whole team responded. 

This enthusiastic resilience is exactly what Coach Morgan is looking for.

“The most important thing to me is that we win the right way, not win at all costs,” Coach Morgan said.  

Previously, Coach Morgan had been the main guy at Dallas Baptist University (DBU) for eight years, building a winning culture that included 231 victories. After the DBU NCAA Division II tennis program was cut, Coach Morgan set out for a new challenge. He said that the small school atmosphere and the desire to connect with students led him to take on the Rams Tennis head coaching position. 

“I really like small schools,” Coach Morgan said. “It gives you more of a chance to really just get to know students across the campus and also that sense of community on campus. It’s very much there.” 

When players met Coach Morgan for the first time, they noticed that he was set on establishing a new culture that promoted camaraderie, passion and, of course, winning. Malte Sommer, senior double major in finance and psychology, said he was excited for the culture change.

“When coach [Morgan] first came, he seemed like a very approachable person and a very helpful person,” Sommer said. “The more we got to know him, the more we noticed that he wanted to implement a new culture to this team. I think that is a great thing and something I look forward to very much.” 

As the season progresses, players are looking to soak up as much knowledge from Coach Morgan as they can. Shelby Standokes, freshman mass communication major, said that his expertise is evident.  

“I can tell by the way he talks, he has so much information. I just want to unlock that all and know everything he knows,” Standokes said.

With a new coach, practices and matches look different from last year; the expectations and attitudes for winning and losing have changed. With Coach Morgan’s philosophy and style, players are challenged in a variety of ways. For Paulina Hudson, general business and supply chain management major, conditioning and physical preparation in practice is a way Coach Morgan challenges her to be the best.  

“The hardest part for me is the conditioning,” Hudson said. “I think he will bring out my best in that area..” 

For Coach Morgan, it means so much more than practicing, playing in tournaments and winning matches. When his players ultimately walk away from the sport, he hopes they take away lessons that’ll carry over into their next phase of life. 

“It’s not always about winning and losing,” Coach Morgan said. “It’s about building relationships. Building relationships and the culture of that ‘family atmosphere’ and creating an experience for the student athletes that they are going to remember for the rest of their lives.”

The Rams first tournament was on Sept. 5 and Sept. 6 at the Arlington Tennis Center (TX). The Rams finished the tournament [14 – 4] in singles and [7 – 2] in doubles. On Sept. 12-14, the team walked away with a total 10 wins in singles and 10 in doubles matches in the Marty Berryman Invitational at Collin Community College (TX). The Rams next tournament is through Sept. 19 – 20 against the Hardin Simmons University Cowboys.