Kent Kinnear will be the newest coach to prowl the sidelines of the tennis courts at the Atkins Tennis Center this year – and the members of the Illinois men’s tennis team could not be more excited.

“He was the perfect candidate for the (assistant coach) job,” said Illinois head coach Brad Dancer. “He wants to coach for all of the right reasons – he is a man of class, character and integrity.”

Dancer said he considers Kinnear “second to none as a human being” and that he stood out in a “multitude of ways throughout the search process.”

One of those ways was his success during his professional playing career. He played on the ATP Tour for 11 years. During that time span, he notched multiple wins over No. 1 ranked doubles teams. He also had world career-high rankings of No. 163 in singles and No. 24 in doubles.

In 1999, Kinnear began working as the head clinician at Fellowship of Christian Athletes tennis camps. He also founded Kball Tennis, Inc., a corporation for junior player development.

Dancer said he had many highly qualified candidates apply for the assistant coaching position, but Kinnear stood out because of his dedication to the members of the Illinois team.

“I am really excited to have the opportunity to work with such great kids and with a prestigious university,” Kinnear said in a press release.

Former Illinois head coach Craig Tiley turned the program into a powerhouse while at Illinois, but Kinnear should not buckle under the pressure – the Illini have won each of the regular-season Big Ten titles for the past nine years. Kinnear was an intricate part of the Clemson tennis team when “Clemson ruled the ACC,” Dancer said.

He earned All-American honors for his doubles play in 1987 and will have the chance to coach two All-Americans at Illinois – senior Ryler DeHeart and sophomore Kevin Anderson, who both earned their first All-American recognition last year.

Dancer said he feels that Kinnear’s experience playing at the collegiate level, combined with his success on the professional tour will help him assist many of the Illinois athletes in their transition between playing tennis at the collegiate level and playing on the professional tour.

“He has a passion and enthusiasm for coaching which was evident during the interview process,” Dancer said. “He is very excited about the opportunity to be involved in college tennis and to be a part of Illinois tennis.”

The Illinois tennis team is just as eager to start its season with its new assistant coach as well. Kinnear had the opportunity to meet with many of the Illinois athletes this summer, and their desire to work with each other is mutual.

“Kent is awesome, and I’m really excited about him coaching this year,” said Illinois sophomore Brandon Davis. “All of the guys are really excited that he is here.”