NORMAN, Okla. – After a record-smashing season on the course with Auburn men's golf, assistant coach Chris Williams has been named one of five finalists for the 2023 Jan Strickland Outstanding Assistant Coach Award, as announced by the GCAA Thursday.
The Strickland Award is presented annually to the NCAA Division I, II, III, NAIA, or NJCAA assistant coach that, among other things, has excelled in working with their student-athletes both on the course and in the classroom.
Other finalists for the Strickland Award include Bo Andrews (Tennessee), Justin Bardgett (Illinois), Dudley Hart (Florida) and Isaiah Logue (Keiser).
In his second season with the Tigers, Williams helped guide Auburn to a school record and nation's best 278.70 team scoring average, five team victories and a second consecutive top-10 national finish. The five tournament wins also tied a program record from 1996-1997. The Orange & Blue ended the fall slate with a No. 1 national ranking thanks to victories in three of four events. Williams joined head coach Nick Clinard to produce eight SEC Golfers of the Week, three All-SEC selections, four PING All-Region honorees and two PING Honorable Mention All-Americans.
"It's no shock to see Chris on this list as he's a huge part of our success formula," Clinard said. "Not only have I enjoyed working alongside him these past two seasons, but our guys have as well. Chris has all that it takes to run his own program someday. He is incredibly skilled at what he does and because of that, he'd be a great candidate to win the Jan Strickland Award."
Williams will join Clinard and fellow assistant coach Buddy Alexander for the 2023-24 season. The Tigers' schedule for will be announced in the coming weeks.