MUNCIE, Ind. – A lot can happen in 53 years. For former Ball State men’s tennis head coach Bill Richards, 53 years is not how long it took him to finish something. Rather, it was those 53 years that he used to leave an impact beyond measure.
Taking the job in 1972 along with his wife Sue, Richards has seen every high, every low and any and everything in between for this program. Through it all, he’s done two things: win and foster a sense of family.
“My wife Sue and I, from day one, opened our home to our team,” Richards said. “We wanted to have that family connection, that family atmosphere, and when we first came here, we weren’t much older than our players.”
When he wasn’t helping his athletes feel at home, Richards was helping them win. Over his five-plus decades, Richards earned a 769-482 overall record, a 243-88 conference record, 17 undefeated regular seasons, and 38 MAC regular-season and tournament titles. Richards was also inducted into the Ball State Hall of Fame in 1993, just 21 years into his coaching career.
So, when Richards decided that it was time to finally hand over the reins to someone else, there was a big question as to who it would be. After all, you can’t just replace someone with 53 years of dominance, but you also can’t hire someone who doesn’t understand just how important the culture that Richards built is. Thankfully, there was someone who perfectly fit the bill.
A Ball State hall of famer, a former BIG 10 tennis coach for 31 years, and someone who was coached by Richards himself, Gene Orlando was the perfect candidate. So much so in fact, that Richards thinks that there’s no one better for the job.
“It’s just the perfect way to step aside,” said Richards, who also continued his praise for Orlando. “From that many years of coaching a program to having one of your all-time great players, all-time great coaches, and an all-time great person take over, I couldn’t ask for any more.”
Orlando shares Richards’s sentiments, giving his fellow Hall of Famer his due flowers.
“The biggest reason why I came back was because of Coach Richards,” Orlando said. “His legacy that he has left here over 53 years, and the opportunity he gave me 42 years ago, and all the experiences I had that led to me being a college coach, I would not be where I am today without him.”
In his time as a player under Richards, Orlando lettered all four years from 1983 to 1987 en route to helping the Cardinals to four straight MAC Championships. Even then, Orlando knew that the results were only a result of the community that Richards built on and off the courts, which is something he wants to continue.
“The biggest impact is trying to develop student-athletes and give them opportunities to do things they never thought they could do on the court, in the classroom, and with the same characters and values that Coach Richards had,” said Orlando. “I want to give them the same experience that I had through him.”
Even if Richards has stepped away and given the reins to Orlando, that doesn’t mean the streak of Richards on the court stops now. For the 54th consecutive season, there will be a Richards as a part of the team in the form of Coach Richards’s grandson, Ryan, who is a freshman. Despite his young age, Ryan has been around the game for a long time, according to his grandpa and himself.
“I’ve been a part of this team and program for my whole life,” Ryan said. “I’ve seen how much it impacts people and how much it develops people into great individuals all along.”
“He’s been with us for as long as he can remember,” Richards added. “He’s been following our program and traveling to all the matches with us.”
From Richards to Orlando, and now Orlando to Richards, the community that Bill Richards built will continue to thrive under the ever-cognizant mind of Gene Orlando for years to come.
For comments, contact Jake Dickman at jacob.dickman@bsu.edu.
