Alabama Adds Ezequiel Gils as Assistant Coach
7/22/2024 2:18:00 PM | Men's Tennis
Gils will return for his fourth overall season with the Tide after serving as the head coach for the UAB Blazers during the 2023-24 season
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. –– Head coach George Husack announced the return of Ezequiel Gils as the Alabama men's tennis assistant coach Monday. Gils previously served as the Tide's volunteer assistant coach for three seasons before being named the head coach of the UAB Blazers for the 2023-24 season.
"We're very fortunate and grateful for Ezequiel's acceptance of this opportunity" said Husack. "He was a top candidate from the start as his connection with the current roster and the University of Alabama was invaluable, not to mention his coaching experience, personal values and character. He's a fantastic fit for our program moving forward in so many ways. I'm super excited to welcome him and his wife Hannah back to Tuscaloosa."
Gils will enter his fourth season at Alabama after previously holding a volunteer assistant coach role from 2020-23. During his prior stint at Alabama, Gils helped the Tide reach the 2021 NCAA Tournament and capture 35 wins over the course of his tenure.
"I'm incredibly thankful to Coach Husack and Dr. Karin Lee for their trust and belief in my ability to add value to an already amazing team and staff," said Gils. "George's persistence in recruiting me in both words and action was invaluable, and I'm looking forward to bringing all that I've learned as a head coach this past year back to Bama. My wife and I love the Tuscaloosa community and are so excited to be coming back home. Roll Tide!"
Ezequiel Gils Resume
- 2023-24: UAB Head Coach
- Served as the head coach of the UAB Blazers for the 2023-24 season
- 2024-25 recruiting class ranked No. 15 nationally among mid-majors
- Coached the doubles pairing of Carlos Gimenez Perez and Juan Pablo Valdez at the ITA Fall National Championships
- Concluded the regular season with three-straight wins
- 2020-23: Alabama Volunteer Assistant Coach
- Served as a volunteer assistant coach at Alabama for three seasons (2020-23)
- Alabama recorded 35 wins during his time as a volunteer assistant coach
- Helped coach Filip Planinsek to ITA Rookie of the Year honors in 2022 as Planinsek finished the season as the second-highest ranked freshman in the country at No. 27 and the only freshman from the SEC to hold an end-of-year ranking
- Planinsek also earned SEC Freshman of the Year honors, first honoree in program history, as he put together a team-leading 22 singles wins and team-leading 22 doubles wins
- Alabama totaled four All-SEC honorees during his first three years with the Tide
- Patrick Kaukovalta and Riccardo Roberto advanced to the 2021 NCAA Doubles Tournament, while Edson Ortiz qualified for the singles draw
- 2019-20: Volunteer Assistant Coach at Rice
- 2015-19: Cedar Bluff Racquet Club
- Recruited and trained junior players at the Knoxville, Tennessee, club
- Led an 18A Junior Team Tennis team that finished seventh at nationals
- 2015: Tennessee Wesleyan
- Began his college coaching career with the Bulldogs
- There, he assisted with match coaching, led practices and recruited players, including an NAIA All-American athlete
- 2012-15: As a Collegiate Athlete
- Began his collegiate career at Tennessee Tech where he was a member of the 2012 OVC regular season champions before transferring to Tennessee Wesleyan in 2014
- Was a two-time NAIA All-American at Tennessee Wesleyan, earning back-to-back All-America honors
- Finished senior season with a 17-0 mark in singles and an 18-2 record in doubles, and was named the AAC Men's Tennis Player of the Year in 2015
- A two-time team captain, Gils was named to the Daktronics-NAIA Scholar Athlete Team as a senior and named Tennessee Wesleyan's Most Representative Male Student
- While in college, he coached at the Hugo Armando Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Florida where he worked with a number of players, including 2018 Australian Open junior champion Sebastian Korda
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Players Mentioned
