Paul Scarpa Position: Head Coach Experience: 43rd Year at Furman Alma Mater: Florida State (1962)

Furman men's tennis has grown to its dominance under the hard work and dedication of head coach Paul Scarpa, the winningest active NCAA Division I head coach in America (813 wins) and a member of both the South Carolina Tennis and Furman Halls-of-Fame. Scarpa, whose path at Furman includes a stint as an assistant men's basketball coach and a 14-year period at the helm of the Paladin men's soccer team, is the longest tenured member of the Furman athletic department. The native of Charleston, SC is in his 43rd season with the Furman men's tennis team and his 46th season as a collegiate head tennis coach.

"Paul Scarpa embodies what we look for in Furman athletics," commented Furman Athletic Director Gary Clark, "He has been an integral part of Furman for over 40 years and has positively affected thousands of young people through his coaching, camps and mentoring."

A veteran of coaching since he accepted his first assignment at Florida State in 1964, Scarpa has compiled a 813-505 record, ranking him first among the nation's active tennis coaches in wins. His 45 years of experience and .617 winning percentage also rank among the nation's elite. On March 9, 2008, Scarpa etched his name in the record book as he reached the 800-win plateau with a 6-1 victory over Georgia Southern. Scarpa was inducted into the Southern Tennis Hall-of-Fame in 2006, extending his already lengthy list of honors and awards.

Scarpa took over the Furman men's tennis program in 1964, his first team finishing fourth in the Southern Conference. Just two years later, Scarpa would lead his team to the first of 13 Southern Conference Championships during his reign. Overall, Scarpa's Furman teams have posted a 258-37 (.875) overall conference record and recorded 40 straight winning seasons in the league. Under Scarpa, Furman has racked up 13 Southern Conference Championships and tacked on its 13th league tournament title in 2008. During one stretch in the early 1990's, Furman won 25 straight Southern Conference matches. Undaunted by non-conference foes, Scarpa teams have posted winning records in non-league matches in 37 of his 42 seasons at Furman.

Cited many times for his coaching brilliance, Scarpa has been named Southern Conference Coach-of-the-Year eight times, most recently in 2008. In 1990 and 2000, he was selected as the South Carolina Coach-of-the-Year by the South Carolina Tennis Association. In 1990, he also became the first coach on staff to receive the J. Lyles Alley Coach-of-the-Year Award, given in honor of Furman's late basketball coach and athletic director.

Scarpa was also the driving force behind the design, fundraising and building of the Mickel Tennis Center, which opened in February of 1996.

While Scarpa's influence has left its mark at Furman and in South Carolina, it has also been felt at the national level. In 1993, the NCAA began utilizing a new dual match scoring system -- developed by Scarpa -- in all men's and women's dual match and championship play. Known as the Scarpa System, the "3-6" format specifies that all matches begin with doubles play featuring eight-game pro sets and that all three doubles teams play for one team doubles point. The proven aim of the system was to shorten the time frame of a typical dual match, thus increasing overall intensity and fan interest -- two elements that are hallmarks of Scarpa's Furman program.

The Furman coach is well known for his excellence in player development. In 2002, Furman's doubles team of James Cameron and John Chesworth advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Doubles Championships, thus qualifying the tandem for All-America status. Chesworth, who began as a No. 5 singles player as a freshman, developed under Scarpa's tutelage into an outstanding singles player and participated in the 2002 NCAA Singles Championships and was named the Southern Conference Player-of-the-Year during his junior campaign. Sam Schroerlucke (`98) advanced to the NCAA Tournament as a senior and was named Southern Conference Player-of-the-Year once and tournament Most Valuable Player twice. In 2003 Scarpa again produced the league Player of the Year in Cameron, who was also an Academic All-American.

Scarpa has a habit of taking good tennis players and making them great. Jeff Maddox ('76) rose from a No. 6 singles player to the conference champion at No. 1. Langdon Brockinton (`80), a Phi Beta Kappa, never lost a singles or doubles match in four years of action in the Southern Conference Tournament. Don Barton ('82) went from No. 7 singles as a freshman to an All-American as a junior, advancing to the round of 16 in the NCAA Championships. And, the most heralded player in Furman tennis history, Ned Caswell ('87), a former member of the United States Junior Davis Cup Team and touring professional, advanced from the bottom of Furman's singles lineup to the forefront of collegiate tennis. Caswell, a two-time All-American, has been ranked as high as No. 1 in the world in the Over-35 singles and doubles divisions. In addition, two of Scarpa's players -- Steve Price ('86) and Troy Goers ('87) -- garnered Academic All-America honors following successful careers.

As proof that Scarpa recruits and develops well-rounded student athletes, 14 of his former players have gained admission to medical school, including 2004 graduates Patrick Fillnow and Art Baker.

When not coaching his Paladins in the fall and spring, Scarpa runs a highly regarded summer tennis camp at Furman, which over the years has drawn some of the region and nation's best young talent. This includes former camper Nancy Yeargin-Furman, who was inducted into the Southern Tennis Hall of Fame in 2003 with Scarpa as her presenter.

A native of Charleston, S.C., and 1962 graduate of Florida State, Scarpa was a former top singles and doubles player for the Seminoles, winning the NCAA Eastern Intercollegiates. He reached the singles quarterfinals of the National 35s Clay Court Championships in 1975, and also made the doubles finals of the National Teaching Professional Championships that same year, an achievement that helped him garner South Carolina Professional-of-the-Year accolades. Scarpa also holds the distinction of being the first player to win the men's state championship as both an amateur and later as a professional when it was opened to pros for the first time.

One of the most influential players and coaches ever produced by the state of South Carolina, Scarpa's contribution to tennis at Furman University and in the Palmetto state was summed up best when he was inducted into South Carolina's Tennis Hall-of-Fame in Belton, in 1986. In 1994, the Furman community added emphasis to his accomplishments by inducting him into the school's athletic hall-of-fame. And 10 years ago, Scarpa's Furman coaching legacy was ensured when it was announced the championship court in Minor Herndon Mickel Tennis Center would bear his name. Along the way, Scarpa has also enjoyed the role of inventor, patenting the tape (Tenex) used to mark clay courts throughout the world.

Married to the former Sandy Scruggs of Travelers Rest, Scarpa has two children, Seth, 28, and Elizabeth, 26. He also has a grandson, Banks, born in 2004 and a new granddaughter, Charlotte Blair, born December 9, 2006.