Men's Tennis
- Title:
- Volunteer Assistant Coach
One of the brightest young minds in college tennis and a Southeastern Conference veteran was officially rejoined the Alabama men's tennis coaching staff on Aug. 21, 2019.
In his first season in the role, Goodwin helped the Tide to its 11-5 overall record and No. 26 national team ranking before the season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team reached a season-high No. 17 ranking on March 3.
The 2019 ITA Southern Region Assistant Coach joined the Crimson Tide after spending the previous two seasons as the assistant coach of Mississippi State. Before then, he spent one season as the volunteer assistant coach at Michigan. Following his playing career with the Tide from 2014-15, Goodwin served as an undergraduate assistant for the Crimson Tide in the fall of 2015 and then as a volunteer assistant coach for the spring 2016 campaign.
Goodwin immediately made an impact on the Bulldog program, helping head coach Matt Roberts continue the team's established momentum from recent years. In 2018, State realized its most success overall in 20-plus seasons, making the NCAA quarterfinals for the first time since 1998 and claiming the SEC Tournament crown for the first time since 1996. The Bulldogs had three All-Americans in 2018 in addition to numerous other team and individual honors.
The following year, Goodwin helped State continue its winning ways, helping guide the Maroon and White to its second straight SEC Tournament crown. That team bested its overall mark from his first year on staff, going 24-4 and reaching the NCAA Round of 16. Individually, the Bulldogs had four All-Americans in 2019, along with a host of other team and individual accolades, including Nuno Borges earning ITA National Player of the Year. For his efforts, Goodwin was recognized as the ITA Southern Region Assistant of the Year.
Goodwin came to Starkville after spending a season as a volunteer assistant on Coach Adam Steinburg's staff at the University of Michigan. In Ann Arbor, he helped guide a squad that finished 23-7 overall and 9-2 in Big Ten play in 2016-17 while the team also finished the campaign ranked 25th nationally.
Upon completing his collegiate playing career at Alabama during the 2014-15 season, Goodwin served as an undergraduate assistant for the Crimson Tide in the fall of 2015 and then as a volunteer coach for the spring 2016 campaign.
In addition to his stints in Tuscaloosa and Ann Arbor, Goodwin has served with the USTA in a pair of roles. In summer 2016, he worked with USTA Player Development, where he learned under numerous national coaches and assisted with the USTA Collegiate Team. In June 2017, he had the opportunity to work with the USTA Collegiate National Team coaching top American college players on the ITF Futures circuit.
Goodwin began his collegiate tennis career at Southern Miss, playing two seasons before transferring to Alabama.
He kicked off his freshman season at USM with a bang, holding a 22-7 overall singles record, 19-3 in dual matches, highlighted by a pair of eight-match win streaks. As a sophomore, he built on that success, leading the Golden Eagles in singles and doubles wins with 25 and 19, respectively. In dual match play, he compiled a 16-7 mark in singles and went 11-9 in doubles with 10 of those victories coming at the No. 1 position.
With the Crimson Tide, Goodwin quickly established himself as one of the team's best players and earned the team's Tenacity Award for his outstanding work ethic as a senior. In his two seasons in Tuscaloosa, he compiled a 30-24 record, including a 12-6 ledger at the No. 6 spot. In his junior season, he won 13 singles matches and 11 in doubles.
In the classroom, Goodwin also excelled, being twice named to the Conference USA Commissioner's Honor Roll during his time in Hattiesburg. He was also a recipient of a Conference USA Academic Medal, awarded to student-athletes with GPAs of 3.75 or higher and was named an Intercollegiate Tennis Association Scholar-Athlete. At Alabama, Goodwin continued his off-court success as a member of the 2014 and 2015 SEC Academic Honor Roll as well as a member of the 2015 SEC Community Service Team.
As a player after college, Goodwin teamed up with Vikram Hundal to win the doubles crown at the U.S. Open National Playoffs Southern Sectional Qualifying Tournament in June 2016.
Goodwin is the son of Scott and Sara Goodwin and has two sisters (Geales and Grace). The Alpharetta, Ga., native graduated from Alabama in December 2015 with a degree in finance and economics.
