Turnbow named Southeast Regional Coach of Year

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Middle Tennessee men's golf coach Whit Turnbow has been named the Eaton Golf Pride Southeast Regional Coach of the Year following the most successful Division I season in program history.

Turnbow is one of nine regional coaches of the year named by Eaton Corporation, a manufacturer of golf grips. The National Coach of the Year will be named during an awards reception dinner in January.

"It is always a tremendous honor to be recognized and it's an even greater honor when you are recognized by your peers," said Turnbow, who also was named Sun Belt Coach of the Year in his first season leading the Blue Raider program. "All the credit goes to our players. They did a great job all season and they were at their best when it mattered the most."

Turnbow led Middle Tennessee into the NCAA Division I National Championships for the first time in program history, where they eventually made the cut and finished 15th nationally. The Blue Raiders earned an at-large berth into the NCAA East Regional in 2008, marking the first-ever at-large invitation for the program.

The Blue Raiders finished ninth at the East Regional in Chattanooga to earn a spot in the National Championships. Middle Tennessee won a school-record five tournaments in 2007-08, including four straight titles during the spring season.

Turnbow, who loses just one player to graduation, saw his team post a 142-54 record during the 2007-08 season.

"We had a great group of guys and they were fun to coach," Turnbow said. "We had goals and, for the most part, we reached all of our goals. The good thing for us is we lose just one senior from the team and we have a good balance of strong returning players. They know what it takes to get to the highest level of college golf and that work ethic will carry over into the upcoming season."

Eaton's golf grip division is the world's largest manufacturer of golf grips, with manufacturing, sales and distribution facilities on five continents.

Eaton Golf Pride Division I Regional Coaches of the Year
New England - Bill Poutre, Hartford
Middle-Atlantic - Greg Nye, Penn State
South - Jamie Green, Charlotte
Southeast - Whit Turnbow, Middle Tennessee
Midwest - Mike Mayer, Indiana
Central - Mike McGraw, Oklahoma State
South Central - J.T. Higgins, Texas A&M
Southwest - Ryan Donovan, San Diego State
Pacific - Chris Zambri, Southern California