NORMAN, Okla. – University of Illinois men's golf head coach Mike Small has been selected as the Midwest Region Coach of the Year for the 11th time in his career by the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).
In 2020-21, Small once again guided the Illini to the pinnacle of the sport, culminating in the program's sixth consecutive Big Ten Championship, a second-place showing at the NCAA Stillwater Regional, and a 13th consecutive berth in the NCAA Championship where the Orange and Blue advanced to the match play quarterfinals to secure a top-five national finish.
The Illini's 2021 Big Ten Championship marked the 18th in program history and the 11th – in the last 12 postseasons – under Small's guidance. Illinois' current run matches Ohio State's stretch of 11 titles in 12 years from 1976-87 as the most dominant era in Big Ten men's golf history.
Illinois' selection for the NCAA Stillwater Regional was the program's 16th under Small. He has now guided his alma mater through the NCAA Regional to the NCAA Championship in each of the last 13 postseasons dating back to 2008, a streak that ranks second nationally, just one behind Texas. The Illini's match play berth, as one of the final eight teams vying for the national title, marked the program's seventh since the current format was adopted in 2009, a total that also ranks second nationally, one behind Oklahoma State. Â
The Illini finished no lower than a share of fifth in any of the team's 10 events on the season and, in addition to the Big Ten Championship, captured team victories at the Mobile Bay Intercollegiate, the LSU Invitational, the Louisiana Classics, and the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate.
Individually, Small guided his players to several conference, regional, and national awards. Junior Adrien Dumont de Chassart was tabbed as the Big Ten's Co-Player of the Year, the 12th in program history. Dumont de Chassart (first team) joined fifth-year seniors Michael Feagles (first) and Giovanni Tadiotto (second), and sophomore Jerry Ji (first) as members of the Big Ten All-Conference team. The quartet also earned PING All-Midwest Region honors from the GCAA, with Feagles, who finished seventh in the inaugural PGA Tour University rankings, capping his career as a GCAA second-team All-American. Dumont de Chassart earned All-America third-team, while Ji was tabbed as an All-America honorable mention performer.Â
Small's first-career Midwest Region Coach of the Year laurel came in 2003. He also earned the nod in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019.
Looking ahead, the Orange and Blue are poised for another successful season in 2021-22. UI returns six members of the 2020-21 squad: Luke Armbrust, Dumont de Chassart, Piercen Hunt, Ji, Tommy Kuhl and Nico Lang. The program also welcomes a trio of freshman standouts in Jackson Buchanan (Dacula, Ga.), TJ Barger (Bloomington, Ill.), and Dylan Keating (Drogheda, Ireland).
