Men's Tennis
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Email:
- nils@uoregon.edu
- Phone:
- 541-346-4420
Nils Schyllander recently completed his 18th season as head coach of the University of Oregon men’s tennis program. Schyllander has been at UO for a total of 25 years and is one of two coaches in ITA history to be named regional coach of the year for both a men’s and women’s team. He served as an assistant coach for four years and a head coach for three years with the women’s program before being named head coach of the UO men prior to the 2007 season.
Schyllander has posted a 243-177 record with the UO men and is one of only two coaches in program history (Buzz Summers, 1968-94) to reach triple figures in wins. For his career, he owns an all-time record as a head coach of 286-205. He earned Wilson/ITA Northwest Region Coach of the Year honors in 2014, and was the Pac-12 Coach of the Year for the 2016-17 season.
Schyllander has led Oregon's charge to prominence as the Ducks have established themselves as a consistent contender on the national stage. The native of Sweden has led the Ducks to eight straight seasons of 14 wins or better and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament in three of the last five seasons. In 2016, Oregon advanced past the first round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history with a win over No. 23 Tulsa in the opening round.
Most recently, Schyllander led the 2017 Ducks to the first-ever back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearance in the history of the program, earning the honor of Pac-12 Coach of the Year in the process. For the second straight year, Oregon advanced past the opening round with a victory over No. 34 Memphis. The Ducks finished the year with a 19-7 record, tied with 2016 for the most wins under Schyllander, and recorded their best-ever Pac-12 finish in fourth. Oregon's .731 winning percentage was also the best for the program since the 1994-95 season (.757).
The Ducks slotted within the ITA top 25 for each of the final 12 rankings of 2017, the longest streak in program history. Oregon finished the year inside the ITA top 25 for the first time ever at No. 24, and they slotted in at No. 20 in the USTA final rankings. The Ducks added to their terrific season with a win over No. 15 Stanford on April 16, matching the highest-ranked win in program history.
Schyllander has coached student-athletes to eight of the top 10 singles seasons in program history and all four of the top doubles seasons in UO history. He has also coached Oregon’s all-time winningest player, Jayson Amos, who graduated in 2017 with the program record for singles (93). Also in 2017, sophomore Thomas Laurent won 30 matches to shatter the previous UO single-season record.
Schyllander cemented UO’s status as a growing power nationally in 2014, guiding the Ducks to their first Pac-12 Championship semifinal appearance in program history and their first NCAA Championship appearance in 10 years. The Ducks posted a 17-10 record in 2014 with six wins over nationally ranked opponents and numerous milestone victories. Among the most prestigious of those milestones was Oregon’s first ever ITA top 25 national ranking, which was achieved on March 16, 2014, with a No. 24 ranking. That climb continued through the 2015 season and into the historic 2016 campaign.
Prior to being named head coach, Schyllander was an assistant coach at Oregon for four years. Schyllander originally came to Eugene after a stint in Aliso Viejo in southern California, mentoring four nationally-ranked junior players in one and a half years. Prior to that, he served as the Advanced Junior Tennis Director for the Sam Olsen Professional Academy, coordinating the administrative aspects of the program and traveling with his players to regional and national tournaments.
A former Northern Arizona University standout, Schyllander began his collegiate coaching career with the Lumberjacks as an assistant coach at Northern Arizona University during the 1995-96 season. He coordinated the team’s recruiting and practice components and oversaw opponent scouting and various administrative duties.
As a player, the two-time Big Sky Conference Honorable Mention selection was also voted the team’s MVP and Northern Arizona University’s men’s athlete of the year in 1995. Prior to his arrival in Flagstaff, Ariz., Schyllander played one season at Saddleback College, receiving All-America recognition in 1993.
A native of Tessinkolan, Sweden, he graduated from high school in 1990 with an emphasis in Political Science. Afterwards, Schyllander served in the Swedish Royal Army in the Ammunition Transport Platoon through June 1992.
Schyllander graduated from Northern Arizona with a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts and a minor in physical education.
Schyllander and his wife, Rebecca, have two daughters, Elin Elisabet (10/6/02) and Ida Eleonora (7/6/07).
