The Ohio State Buckeyes athletic community is in mourning this week as they lost a longtime coach.
According to a report from NBC4 Columbus, longtime Ohio State men’s tennis coach John Daly passed away on Wednesday at the age of 78.
Daly served as the head coach of the Ohio State men’s tennis team from 1972 to 1999. During his time with the Buckeyes, he helped the team rack up 431 match wins.
One of the longest-tenured coaches in the history of the Ohio State athletic department, he coached the first three All-Americans in program history including Francisco Gonzalez in 1975 and 1976, Ernie Fernandez in 1981, and current Ohio State tennis coach Ty Tucker in 1990 and 1991.
Daly’s teams were consistently dominant, finishing in the top four of the conference standings 13 times, including one conference title in 1991. He also coached six 31 All-Big Ten selections and six Big Ten singles and doubles champions.
Following his retirement in 1999, Ohio State chose to hire one of his former players to replace him with Ty Tucker taking over as the program’s head coach. Tucker has since picked up right where he left off and helped build Ohio State into one of the most dominant and consistent tennis programs in the country.
While Tucker took the program to new heights, Daly dedicated himself to volunteer work.
According to NBC4, Daly donated refinished wine boxes for local charities, raising thousands of dollars. He also hosted wheelchair tennis tournaments, taught wheelchair tennis players and traveled as the wheelchair tennis coach to the Junior Olympics in Paris, France.
Daly leaves behind a loving family – many of whom are part of the Buckeye community.
Daly had two daughters, a son, and seven grandchildren. All three of his children attended Ohio State and two of his grandchildren currently attend Ohio State.
He left a lasting impact on the Ohio State community.
He will not be soon forgotten.
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