Division I Coaches Weigh in on NCAA's Decision to Award Tennis Championships to USTA National Campus in Lake Nona Through 2037

Last week's news that the NCAA had awarded the USTA's Lake Nona National Campus the Division I Tennis Championships for 2029-2037 took many in the college tennis community by surprise, although I had been hearing about the value of an Omaha model for tennis, based on the College Baseball World Series there, for more than ten years. I wrote an article for the Tennis Recruiting Network about this possibility back in 2022 after talking with coaches and players at the NCAAs in Champaign that year.

The obvious advantages of a permanent site were counteracted by a meaningful number of coaches who believed the tournament should be on a college campus, which had been the norm prior to the 2019 NCAA championships, held for the first time at the USTA's National Campus outside Orlando. Central Florida is the host, and plays its matches at the National Campus, but the university's campus is not nearby. 

The reviews from the three times the event was held in Lake Nona previously (2019, 2021, 2023) have been mixed, and the hopes that the Tennis Channel facility there would lead to more exposure for the tournament have not been realized. I have not personally attended any of those three NCAAs, but I did not feel the experience watching remotely did justice to what should be, by a wide margin, the crown jewel of collegiate tennis.

Improvements the USTA has said it will implement at the NCAA's behest (as noted in the release below)--an additional indoor facility with adequate seating in the existing facility, more shade, better scoring and a better student-athlete experience--are the key for many of the coaches I spoke to about this announcement at the Orange Bowl last week. I talked with many coaches about it, not all of them were willing to go on the record, but here are the comments from five who were. 

Brett Masi, USC men's head coach:

It sounds like a good opportunity if the right resources as they're saying will be presented and put forth for the cause. There's a lot of great facilities that we have across the country on college campuses that we've always looked forward to going to, so if the USTA can actually put that stamp and landmark like an Omaha has, then sure. 

I've always said that Ojai, for example, is so special to me, it's a great spot in Southern California yes, but it's the people around it who come and support it every year for a hundred-plus years. Those are the things that make it great. Why was Georgia so great for so many years before they started to rotate it? It's the people who always volunteered, always helped, it was always such a great venue. Obviously Georgia has a great tennis facility too, but it's the people around it who supported it. So as long as we have the support, the people in the community can make it a special thing, sure why not have an Omaha in Orlando?

It will be interesting to see if they go with sixteen (teams at the final site) again or if it's going to stay at eight. Who knows if we're going to go back to a spring national championships for individuals as well. If all that stuff is in place, maybe they do have the right facility for it. 

Jordan Szabo, Auburn women's head coach:

"I'm personally excited for it because I really like it in Orlando. From a coach's perspective, we've been down there so many times and there's so many practice courts. That's the biggest thing for me. I know that sounds crazy, but I just love the resources to be able to practice and do what you need to do to prepare for a main event. 

You can play matches simultaneously with both sides (of the collegiate facility) the same. Generally you have pretty good weather. The indoor factor there is a little strange, not having parents watch players there is really tough. 

I personally think it's a good result, I do think it's weird that Central Florida gets to host it for ten years, a school gets to host it, but it does feel very much like a neutral site. Personally, if the USTA does what they say they are going to do, hopefully they can make it a bigger and better event and having some continuity of going there I think will be a good result.

Billy Pate, Princeton men's coach:

Talking about it either on the ITA (Intercollegiate Tennis Association) board or op com, different groups, we talked about the idea of an Omaha, if that would be the best thing to promote college tennis, having the consistency of knowing where you're going every year and then build on that. I think it's very good from that standpoint, but I know there are lot of people, I think there's a romance with Georgia. Coaches and spectators I think would agree that was the best site for a long time, but when people started to bid and build new facilities, the NCAA felt they had to move it around. I hear the arguments for Georgia, but if you're only going to have it there once every four years, you lose that consistency.

Clearly, in my opinion, the biggest criticism is the indoor situation. They've been quite fortunate not to have rain a few times and we all know if you had to go to the current indoor and had any kind of crowd support, it would be extremely limited. They are making that effort to build a new indoor that would have spectator seating and make a great fan environment, and that's a huge plus and I'm excited to see what will happen. 

The other question is will it be televised? Tennis Channel has a studio there and that's a big component that brings added value as well. I also think as the community around Lake Nona--I don't think of it as much as Orlando, but more of a suburb, a smaller community--builds up the infrastructure, more shops, more restaurants, more hotels, I think that's going to add more flavor to the event as well. And it's close to the airport, which is really a plus.

I think the relationship the USTA has with the ITA has never been better and I think that's a positive. Obviously the USTA has the resources to promote this if they choose do to so, and it can be a win-win.

Per Nilsson, Florida women's head coach:

I think they should have done this a long time ago. It gives the location the time to build it up, sort of like Georgia did back in the day. The reason it worked there was the community got behind it, people got used to it, and I think the USTA is wanting to do the same thing. 

We did a few years there and it got better each year until we moved away and went somewhere else. But now, with the commitment they are doing, they can build it into something special. I'm sure there will be schools who think it's far away, but they have the infrastructure, everything we want to be able to do it. I'm really hoping they step up and it sounds like they will. 

They've outlined all the things we've been concerned about, and I like that they put in there that if this (fall individuals) pilot program doesn't go through, they are willing to do the individuals. Because I think it's a disaster to have it in the fall.

Drake Bernstein, Georgia women's head coach:
(Georgia is hosting the NCAAs in 2026 and 2027)

We are all interested in elevating college tennis  and hopefully we can build some of that momentum in Athens the next two years. 

We hope to give the student-athletes the experience of a lifetime in the couple years of the tournament being on campus for a while.

USTA NATIONAL CAMPUS AWARDED 10-YEAR BID TO HOST

NCAA DI MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

Orlando facility cemented as home of college tennis; USTA commits to major infrastructure enhancements by 2028

ORLANDO, Fla., December 9, 2024 – The NCAA today announced that it has approved a bid to award the USTA National Campus the NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Tennis Championships for a 10-year period beginning in 2028. This landmark agreement will cement Orlando and the USTA National Campus as the home of college tennis, and aims to replicate the successful model set forth by the Men’s College World Series and Women’s College World Series, held annually in Omaha, Neb., and Oklahoma City, respectively.

The USTA plans to make a number of infrastructure enhancements that will not only elevate the Championships for both student-athletes and fans, but also create a lasting impact on the Orlando community. Included in these capital projects are the addition of six indoor courts (bringing the total number of available indoor courts to 12) with improved viewing areas for all 12 indoor courts; permanent shade structures at the Collegiate Center, which contains 12 outdoor competition courts; and enhanced student-athlete amenities and scoring infrastructure.

“This is a momentous day for the USTA and for college tennis,” said Lew Sherr, CEO and Executive Director, USTA. “Supporting college tennis is a growing priority for the USTA as it is not only the aspirational dream of youth tennis players across the country, but is also an increasingly vital part of the elite player development pathway. We are proud to bring this event to Orlando for years to come and are excited to work alongside the NCAA and all of our local partners to elevate this event and give college tennis the platform it so richly deserves.”

In addition to the infrastructure investments, the USTA has committed to work with the NCAA and other college tennis stakeholders to raise the profile of the Championships. This includes both increased on-site fan engagement, as well as a commitment to supplement existing NCAA broadcast agreements.

"We are excited about this agreement with the USTA and UCF to serve as long-term hosts for the NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Tennis Championships," said John Bugner, NCAA director of championships and alliances. "The existing track record of hosting successful NCAA tennis championships, along with the continued improvements to the USTA National Campus were integral to our decision-making process. With this commitment from both the USTA and NCAA, we're looking forward to what can be achieved in growing and enhancing the student-athlete and fan experience over the 10 years of the agreement."

The NCAA previously announced that the USTA National Campus was awarded the 2028 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Tennis Championships. That year’s event will now mark the first of 10 consecutive years, concluding in 2037, that the Orlando facility will host the final three rounds of the season-ending team championships. Should the individual singles and doubles championships, which are currently being held in the fall as part of a two-year pilot program, move back to the spring, the USTA National Campus will also host those events each year.

“We are thrilled to partner with the USTA as co-hosts for the NCAA Division I Tennis Championships,” said UCF Vice President and Director of Athletics, Terry Mohajir. “This is a testament to our community’s passion for sports and our commitment to providing an unforgettable experience for athletes and fans from all over. Being able to host prestigious events such as this over a 10-year period continues to shine the spotlight on Orlando as a premier sports destination while also strengthening our college athletics brand.”