July 1, 2011
SAN DIEGO - Following one of the best seasons in program history, San Diego State's Ryan Donovan has been named the Eaton Golf Pride West Region Division I Men's Coach of the Year, the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) announced Friday afternoon. This is the second time Donovan has received the award in his eight years at the helm of the Aztecs, as he earned the same honor, although for the Southwest Region, following the 2007-08 campaign.
Last month, the San Diego State alum was tabbed as one of 12 finalists for the Dave Williams Award, which is handed out annually to the national coach of the year in Division I men's golf. Donovan also became the first Aztec named Mountain West Coach of the Year in the league's 12-year history.
In 2010-11, Donovan led the program to its' first Mountain West and NCAA regional championships. In addition, the Aztecs claimed five other tournament titles at the William H. Tucker Intercollegiate, the Arizona Invitational, the USC Invitational, the Fresno State Lexus Golf Classic and the Barona Collegiate Cup. The seven titles ranked second nationally to only consensus No. 1 Oklahoma State, which had eight victories.
The Yorba Linda, Calif., native also helped this season's team to as high as a No. 4 national ranking by golfstat.com, 13 top-five finishes, including 12 in the top three, while boasting a combined head-to-head record of 168-31-1, which amounts to a 84.3 winning percentage. SDSU did not finish lower than seventh at any 2010-11 outing prior to the NCAA national championships and twice was named the national team of the week by GolfWeek.
Under Donovan's tutelage, junior J.J. Spaun (San Dimas, Calif.) was named a third-team All-American and first team all-conference honoree, while freshman Todd Baek (Auckland, New Zealand) picked up honorable mention All-America and national all-freshman accolades. Both Spaun (t-3rd) and Baek (t-10th) finished in the top 10 at the NCAA tournament in Stillwater, Okla., in the beginning of June.
Donovan was a four-year member of the Aztec men's golf squad from 1997-2001, before earning his degree in public administration and playing professionally. He returned to The Mesa as an assistant coach in 2003, and later was promoted to head coach, where he has guided SDSU to 86 top-10 tournament finishes, 62 top-five performances, 19 team titles and four trips to the NCAA national championships, including this past season.
2010-11 Eaton Golf Pride Region Coaches of the Year
Division I
West - Ryan Donovan, San Diego State
Northeast - Colin Sheehan, Yale
East - Josh Gregory, Augusta State
Southeast - Jay Seawell, Alabama
Midwest - Mike Small, Illinois
Central - Mike McGraw, Oklahoma State