Bill Richards has seen it all.
From the expansion of the Mid-American Conference in the early 1970s to the building of Ball State into a MAC tennis power in the early 1980s, the Ball State men's tennis coach has been apart of some of the greatest moments in MAC history.
And yet, when asked why he decided to become a tennis coach, Richards gave a simple answer.
"I saw my coaches in high school and saw what they did and it was something I was positive that's what I wanted to do," he said.
Now in his 40th season, Richards owns a 585-339 career record, making him the most successful coach in school and Mid-American Conference history. In that span, Richards has won 36 MAC Regular Seasons and tournament championships combined.
Despite all of the success throughout his career, Richards said it's been a process.
"Ball State was a lot different both academically and athletically when I first came here," he said. "Tennis was a lot different. We competed at a lower level. It was very seasonal; it wasn't year-round like it is now. It's transitioned into a big athletic program."
School Years
Before Richards began his tenure at Ball State, he played tennis at Sturgis High School from 1963-1966. During his time at Sturgis, he won the state doubles titles in 1965 and 1966.
Harley Pierce, who coached Richards at Sturgis from 1963-1964, said Richards had a great talent for tennis. Under Pierce, Richards played No. 2 singles.
"He was a natural," he said. "I taught him before he got in high school. He won practically all of his matches. He had a good forehand, good backhand. He was just a good all-around player."
Richards said Pierce was a big influence in his life and coaching career.
"I respect him tremendously," he said. "I modeled myself in terms of my coaching style after him. He was very structured, very disciplined and very meticulous in planning."
After graduating from Sturgis, Richards attended Western Michigan University to earn a bachelor of science degree in speech communications and to continue his tennis career. There, he was a three-year letterwinner and a MAC champion in both singles and doubles.
Pierce said Western Michigan was the right fit for Richards.
"He was recruited pretty heavy by Western Michigan," Pierce said. "At that time, Western was a very strong tennis school. He had a lot of talent."
The Beginning
After earning a master's degree in health and physical education from Bowling Green in 1971, Richards began his coaching career. He became the coach at Portage High School, a Michigan school near Kalamazoo, home of Western Michigan. Following a one-year stint with Portage, Richards took on the opportunity of coaching a Division I school.
That school was Ball State, which was coming off of an 8-10 record under former coach Jim Dickerson.
John Reno was the chairman of the school of Physical Education and Athletics at Ball State from 1970-1981. He had the final say in the hiring of Richards. Reno said Western Michigan relations played a key role in the hiring of Richards.
"Western Michigan's athletic director, Joseph Hoy, was one of my classmates in the doctoral program at Indiana University," he said. "Our athletic director at the time, Ray Louthen, was a Western Michigan graduate. So there was that very close connection and knowing the source, Hoy, we were very happy with his recommendation and we hired coach Richards."
Reno also said the fact Richards played at Western Michigan was key in making his final decision.
"They had a very high ambition," he said. "And we wanted our players to have that same desire and drive to win a championship."
Success in the MAC
Ten years after he was hired, Richards won his first of many MAC titles. He coached Ball State to a 19-4 overall record and a 7-1 mark in MAC play, good enough to tie for the regular season championship.
After coaching Ball State to a tie for the MAC regular season title in 1983, Ball State dominated the MAC for the next four seasons. From 1984-1988, Ball State went 35-0 in conference play under Richards and won the MAC regular season and tournament titles each year.
Richards said one of the greatest moments of his career was the conference championship in 1984.
"Chasing Miami who had won it four years in a row and dethroning them was one of the most if not the most memorable outcome that I've been associated with," he said.
After winning 10 MAC Regular Seasons and conference tournament titles combined from 1984-1988, Richards continued his dominance in the MAC. From 1989-2011, he coached Ball State to 25 more MAC titles.
The most recent title came in 2011, when Ball State won the MAC tournament as a No. 4 seed. Ball State defeated Western Michigan, Richard's alma mater, in the finals.
"I was very proud of what coach Richards was able to accomplish," Reno said. "He's a quality individual and a quality coach. Nothing less was expected."
Influence on Players
Ball State assistant coach Jarrod Epkey played under Richards from 2005-2008. He said it's different coaching with Richards as opposed to playing for him.
"Now I have a job to do as opposed to expectations from a player to a coach," Epkey said. "For my role, it's letting the guys know and being there for them and letting them understand what he wants because I've been through it."
Prior to his return to Ball State this season, Epkey served as the men's and women's assistant coach at the University of Indianapolis for two seasons. He said Richards has influenced him to become a coach of a school someday.
"There's no other coach I would rather be an assistant for," Epkey said. "The reason is for learning, experience and just knowing stuff outside of tennis. You can ask any one of his four or five hundred players or however many he's had that he'll be there for you as a person outside of tennis. In my opinion, I think he cares almost more about that than he does the tennis. Knowing that as his assistant, I'm in pretty good hands."
Coaching Future
As he continues his 40th season coaching, Richards said he doesn't have a plan on when he'll retire. He said he is still driven and passionate about coaching tennis.
"My wife and I have always said at age 65, we'd evaluate things at that time in terms of our personal lives, financially and different things like that," he said. "I think now as I'm getting closer to that age, I really don't see myself not coaching in the foreseeable future."
Whenever he retires, Richards will leave a mark on Ball State.
"When people look at his career 15, 20, 25 years from now, I think people will say Bill Richards is Ball State," Pierce said.
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