SEGUIN, Texas -- Bill Lehman, Texas Lutheran's head coach for women's and men's tennis, will retire from TLU at the conclusion of the 2010 tennis seasons.
Lehman has served as TLU's head coach for women's and men's tennis since 2002. The 2010 season is Lehman's ninth season as head coach of the Bulldogs.
"Bill Lehman has served our tennis program with honor and distinction," said Bill Miller, TLU's director of athletics. "We congratulate him on a successful run as our tennis coach, and we thank him for his strong service to TLU through the years. We wish Bill and his wife Sherry all the best in their retirement years together."
Lehman announced his retirement plans internally to TLU at the start of the 2009-10 academic year. A national search for a full-time tennis coach for the Bulldogs recently concluded. TLU will make a hiring announcement later this week regarding the tennis position.
“It has been my pleasure to serve Texas Lutheran University as a tennis coach and as a football coach and to be a part of the lives of so many players,” said Lehman. “I think TLU is a great university. I received a degree from TLU. It’s a great place for any young person to go and develop academically, athletically, and spiritually.”
Lehman took four teams - two women's squads and two men's squads - to the American Southwest Conference Championship Tournament.
In 2005, Lehman was named the ASC West Division Women’s Coach of the Year for leading the Bulldogs to a runner-up finish in the ASC West Division. After the 2005 regular season success, Lehman took the Bulldogs to a runner-up finish at the ASC Championship Tournament. Both finishes (in the ASC West and in the conference tournament) still are the best finishes TLU squads have earned in conference and conference tournament action.
In 2007, the TLU men's team advanced to the tournament and upset ASC East No. 2 seed LeTourneau. In 2006, Lehman guided the TLU women’s team to the ASC Championship Tournament semifinal.
Lehman’s 2005 men’s squad qualified for its first-ever American Southwest Conference Championship Tournament after finishing third in the ASC West Division. The Bulldogs upset No. 2 East Division seed Mississippi College in the opening round of the tournament before falling in the semifinals to eventual ASC tournament champion Hardin-Simmons.
Lehman also coached Angela Bryant to the 2005 ASC West Division Player of the Year honor and to the ASC All-Conference team.
Lehman coached a total of four All-ASC players and 23 All-ASC West Division honorees. The Bulldogs also produced 34 Academic All-Conference selections in the Lehman era.
Lehman, a 1960 graduate of Texas Lutheran, served as the offensive coordinator for the Bulldog football team from 1998 until 2000, when he retired from his football coaching duties.
Lehman currently serves as the athletics staff sponsor for the university’s chapter of Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He was named the 2000 Greater San Antonio South Texas Area FCA Sponsor of the Year.
In his under-graduate days, Lehman lettered three years (1958-60) in tennis and in football (1957-59) for Texas Lutheran. He played offensive guard for the Bulldogs and twice earned First Team All-Texas from The Dallas Morning News. During his senior year at Texas Lutheran, he was named a Lutheran College All-American and an Associated Press Little All-American.
Lehman was inducted into the Texas Lutheran Athletics Hall of Fame in 2008.
Lehman’s professional football career included playing time in the Canadian Football League with the Saskatchewan Rough Riders and eight years (six as a player/assistant coach) with the San Antonio Toros of the Continental Football League.
Following his playing career, he wrestled professionally for 13 years under the names Sigfried Stanke and Spoiler No. 2 and against the likes of Andre The Giant and Fritz von Ehrich.
The end of his professional wrestling days sparked the beginning of his football-coaching career. In his more than 20 years in the high school ranks, Lehman served as an assistant coach at San Antonio East Central, Laredo Martin, San Antonio Southwest, Donna, Mission and McAllen. He was the head offensive assistant under Sonny Detmer at San Antonio Southwest and Mission, when those schools had the services of future Heisman Trophy winner and NFL quarterback Ty Detmer and future NFL quarterback Koy Detmer.
Lehman, a New Braunfels native and former football standout at New Braunfels High, lives in Seguin with his wife Sherry. They have an adult son, Troy, who lives in Austin.