Hall of Fame Profiles: Todd Paul
2/13/2019 7:55:00 PM | Men's Tennis
You can say that Todd Paul helped played a vital role in the Wake Forest men's tennis team's first-ever NCAA Championship this past May, but he won't say so himself.
"Maybe you could say I got the ball rolling for the program, but I don't want to take any credit away from the guys that were on the team and won those matches," said Paul. "It's cool to say I was part of the program and it was a very proud moment and a fun night."
Paul will join six other Wake Forest legends in the 45th induction class of the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame. The group will be honored during a dinner on Friday, February 15 at Bridger Field House and will be inducted into the Hall of Fame during halftime ceremonies of Wake Forest's men's basketball game with North Carolina on February 16.
But not recognizing Paul for what he accomplished would take credit away from one of the best players in program history and the tone he set for future teams.
When Paul joined the Demon Deacons in the fall of 2003, the men's tennis team typically hovered in the middle of the national rankings, and Paul himself felt the same about his own game.
"When I first looked up Wake Forest's rankings, they weren't that high. They were No. 42 or 44 (in the country) and had made a few NCAA Tournaments, but they weren't a perennial top-20 team or anything of the sort. I didn't think I was I was that good. I thought I was a solid junior player, so I thought the fit was pretty good."
Paul, who was pointed towards Wake Forest by someone from his hometown who had attended Wake Forest previously, got hot on the junior circuit at the right time and drew the attention of then head coach Jeff Zinn.
"I had good timing and had a really good summer in between my junior and senior years of high school so I ended up getting a lot of attention," Paul said. "That summer, Coach Zinn saw me play a bunch and that's how the connection formed. I took a tour of campus and loved everything about it, so things just fell in line. Wake Forest happened to be a really good fit and I took a visit and it looked like a country club. Everything is green, the campus is beautiful, and I knew some of the guys on the team through junior tennis so it worked out really well."
Despite not thinking he was that good of a tennis player, Paul exploded onto the collegiate scene his freshman season. A native of Stamford, Connecticut, Paul led the team with 28 singles wins during the 2003-04 season and would be tabbed as the ACC Freshman of the Year, just the second player in program history at the time to accomplish the feat. He would go on to earn All-ACC honors that season. Wake Forest would advance to the NCAA Tournament for just the fourth time in the 51-year history of the program during Paul's freshman campaign.
"The team really grew while I was there," said Todd. "I had a good teammate come in at the same time as me and he won a lot of matches. Coach Zinn was really good at focusing on the right ways for our team to win, so we focused a lot on doubles. When you're playing a team of similar caliber, the doubles point is huge. Coach Zinn was very good at teaching doubles and he was huge in my growth as a singles player."
"I think a few factors lined up really well for our team and it helps that I was able to win a lot of matches at the top of the lineup. Those matches are always 50-50 matches and I was winning close to 80% of them."
While Paul showed few signs of struggling in the transition from high school to college, that wasn't the case.
"It was so hard," he recalled. "The first semester was brutal. I can't imagine some of the guys who skip their fall and show up in the spring because it's such a massive transition. From doing laundry and getting up early for your classes, no one is waking you up. The time management and being able to plan your schedule so you allocate enough time for each thing, it was really difficult. It took me two to three months to figure it out and I wouldn't have been able to do it without all the support that the athletic department provides."
Specifically, Paul noted that current Compliance Director Sherry Long, who at the time worked in the athletic academic advising department, played a vital role in his transition to Wake Forest.
"Sherry was awesome. She took such great care of us in terms of helping us with selecting classes and what tutors we should have for the classes. She was making sure we were attending classes and if we happened to miss one she would call and check in on us. She was on top of us and made all the difference in the world."
With his feet solidly underneath him, Paul excelled once again in his sophomore year, being named All-ACC for the second year in a row and having the second-most singles wins (26) on the team. Paul's development took another step forward as a junior, as he qualified for his first-ever NCAA Singles Championship after being ranked as high as No. 10 nationally. He became just the fourth player in program history to qualify for the singles tournament while collecting his third consecutive All-ACC honor. During his sophomore and junior seasons, the Demon Deacons would qualify for two more NCAA Championships as a team, advancing to the second round each year.
As a senior, Paul took his game to the next level. He became the first, and remains as the only, player in program history to earn All-ACC accolades all four seasons. Paul posted a team-leading 32 singles wins, setting a new program record for career singles victories (107), and was named the ITA Carolina Regional Senior Player of the Year. As a team, Paul guided the 2006-07 Deacs to the program's first-ever appearance in the Round of 16 in the NCAA Championship after collecting victories over Charlotte and Clemson. Paul ended his career as a two-time singles All-American (2006 & 2007) and was a 2006 doubles All-American as well.
"We evolved from a so-so team to a team where no other school could overlook us. By the time I left we were ranked in the top 15 or top 20 so I thought we had made a big jump but knew that there's still a big difference between No. 15 and No. 5…or No. 1. I thought once Tony (Bresky) came to the school and saw how he recruited when he was at Cornell and knowing how good of a coach he was when we played against his teams at Virginia, I thought the program could reach a new level. But I don't know if it was going to be a No. 1, national championship level."
Fast-forward to the 2017-18 season and Paul was watching from afar in his home in Stamford, where he works as a tennis instructor. As the dream season began to unfold, a sense of pride washed over Paul.
"I was really proud to say that I went to Wake Forest and was on the team. They are a good representation of the school. Even when I got to visit and meet with the team, they were all super nice and great people."
With Wake Forest's 4-3 victory over Mississippi Sate in the semifinals of the NCAA Championship on Monday, May 21, Paul's phone began to blow up.
"It was pretty cool how it all happened," said Paul. "The team had clinched their spot in the championship really late in the night and Mike Piscetelli (Associate AD, Principal Gifts for the Deacon Club) sent a group chat to a bunch of former players asking who was coming to the championship match. My phone kept buzzing with guys saying that they had just booked flights and it was incredible to see.
"It ended up being about 10 guys that I personally knew that were able to fly back and be a part of the crowd. But it was cool because I was able to meet some of the guys that played on the team in the 80's and 90's. I had never met them before, but they were super nice and it was cool to hear their stories and their experiences."
With Paul and countless other alums of the program on hand, the Demon Deacons captured the program's first-ever NCAA Championship with a 4-2 victory over Ohio State.
As Paul looks back on his time at Wake Forest, it is those former teammates that he cheered alongside, and everyone else on campus, that encapsulates what he loved most about the university.
"Wake Forest is like a second family," said Paul. "I coach a lot of kids and when any of them who might go to Wake Forest get accepted I get to say, 'That's great. Now you're part of the family as well.' I think there's a unique bond in everyone that goes to Wake Forest. Maybe it's because of the size of the campus. After the first few months you've pretty much seen the faces of everyone on campus. It's a big family atmosphere and that's why everyone who leaves Wake Forest says they had a great time. I haven't heard one negative about the school."
While Paul is thankful for his time as a Demon Deacon, the Demon Deacons should be thankful for Todd Paul and what he helped build. The only issue is…he won't take credit for it.
A limited number of $60 tickets are available for sale to the general public for the Hall of Fame dinner on Friday, February 15. Contact Amy Fleet at fleetac@wfu.edu to reserve a ticket.
"Maybe you could say I got the ball rolling for the program, but I don't want to take any credit away from the guys that were on the team and won those matches," said Paul. "It's cool to say I was part of the program and it was a very proud moment and a fun night."
Paul will join six other Wake Forest legends in the 45th induction class of the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame. The group will be honored during a dinner on Friday, February 15 at Bridger Field House and will be inducted into the Hall of Fame during halftime ceremonies of Wake Forest's men's basketball game with North Carolina on February 16.
But not recognizing Paul for what he accomplished would take credit away from one of the best players in program history and the tone he set for future teams.
When Paul joined the Demon Deacons in the fall of 2003, the men's tennis team typically hovered in the middle of the national rankings, and Paul himself felt the same about his own game.
"When I first looked up Wake Forest's rankings, they weren't that high. They were No. 42 or 44 (in the country) and had made a few NCAA Tournaments, but they weren't a perennial top-20 team or anything of the sort. I didn't think I was I was that good. I thought I was a solid junior player, so I thought the fit was pretty good."
Paul, who was pointed towards Wake Forest by someone from his hometown who had attended Wake Forest previously, got hot on the junior circuit at the right time and drew the attention of then head coach Jeff Zinn.
"I had good timing and had a really good summer in between my junior and senior years of high school so I ended up getting a lot of attention," Paul said. "That summer, Coach Zinn saw me play a bunch and that's how the connection formed. I took a tour of campus and loved everything about it, so things just fell in line. Wake Forest happened to be a really good fit and I took a visit and it looked like a country club. Everything is green, the campus is beautiful, and I knew some of the guys on the team through junior tennis so it worked out really well."
Despite not thinking he was that good of a tennis player, Paul exploded onto the collegiate scene his freshman season. A native of Stamford, Connecticut, Paul led the team with 28 singles wins during the 2003-04 season and would be tabbed as the ACC Freshman of the Year, just the second player in program history at the time to accomplish the feat. He would go on to earn All-ACC honors that season. Wake Forest would advance to the NCAA Tournament for just the fourth time in the 51-year history of the program during Paul's freshman campaign.
"The team really grew while I was there," said Todd. "I had a good teammate come in at the same time as me and he won a lot of matches. Coach Zinn was really good at focusing on the right ways for our team to win, so we focused a lot on doubles. When you're playing a team of similar caliber, the doubles point is huge. Coach Zinn was very good at teaching doubles and he was huge in my growth as a singles player."
"I think a few factors lined up really well for our team and it helps that I was able to win a lot of matches at the top of the lineup. Those matches are always 50-50 matches and I was winning close to 80% of them."
While Paul showed few signs of struggling in the transition from high school to college, that wasn't the case.
"It was so hard," he recalled. "The first semester was brutal. I can't imagine some of the guys who skip their fall and show up in the spring because it's such a massive transition. From doing laundry and getting up early for your classes, no one is waking you up. The time management and being able to plan your schedule so you allocate enough time for each thing, it was really difficult. It took me two to three months to figure it out and I wouldn't have been able to do it without all the support that the athletic department provides."
Specifically, Paul noted that current Compliance Director Sherry Long, who at the time worked in the athletic academic advising department, played a vital role in his transition to Wake Forest.
"Sherry was awesome. She took such great care of us in terms of helping us with selecting classes and what tutors we should have for the classes. She was making sure we were attending classes and if we happened to miss one she would call and check in on us. She was on top of us and made all the difference in the world."
With his feet solidly underneath him, Paul excelled once again in his sophomore year, being named All-ACC for the second year in a row and having the second-most singles wins (26) on the team. Paul's development took another step forward as a junior, as he qualified for his first-ever NCAA Singles Championship after being ranked as high as No. 10 nationally. He became just the fourth player in program history to qualify for the singles tournament while collecting his third consecutive All-ACC honor. During his sophomore and junior seasons, the Demon Deacons would qualify for two more NCAA Championships as a team, advancing to the second round each year.
As a senior, Paul took his game to the next level. He became the first, and remains as the only, player in program history to earn All-ACC accolades all four seasons. Paul posted a team-leading 32 singles wins, setting a new program record for career singles victories (107), and was named the ITA Carolina Regional Senior Player of the Year. As a team, Paul guided the 2006-07 Deacs to the program's first-ever appearance in the Round of 16 in the NCAA Championship after collecting victories over Charlotte and Clemson. Paul ended his career as a two-time singles All-American (2006 & 2007) and was a 2006 doubles All-American as well.
"We evolved from a so-so team to a team where no other school could overlook us. By the time I left we were ranked in the top 15 or top 20 so I thought we had made a big jump but knew that there's still a big difference between No. 15 and No. 5…or No. 1. I thought once Tony (Bresky) came to the school and saw how he recruited when he was at Cornell and knowing how good of a coach he was when we played against his teams at Virginia, I thought the program could reach a new level. But I don't know if it was going to be a No. 1, national championship level."
Fast-forward to the 2017-18 season and Paul was watching from afar in his home in Stamford, where he works as a tennis instructor. As the dream season began to unfold, a sense of pride washed over Paul.
"I was really proud to say that I went to Wake Forest and was on the team. They are a good representation of the school. Even when I got to visit and meet with the team, they were all super nice and great people."
With Wake Forest's 4-3 victory over Mississippi Sate in the semifinals of the NCAA Championship on Monday, May 21, Paul's phone began to blow up.
"It was pretty cool how it all happened," said Paul. "The team had clinched their spot in the championship really late in the night and Mike Piscetelli (Associate AD, Principal Gifts for the Deacon Club) sent a group chat to a bunch of former players asking who was coming to the championship match. My phone kept buzzing with guys saying that they had just booked flights and it was incredible to see.
"It ended up being about 10 guys that I personally knew that were able to fly back and be a part of the crowd. But it was cool because I was able to meet some of the guys that played on the team in the 80's and 90's. I had never met them before, but they were super nice and it was cool to hear their stories and their experiences."
With Paul and countless other alums of the program on hand, the Demon Deacons captured the program's first-ever NCAA Championship with a 4-2 victory over Ohio State.
As Paul looks back on his time at Wake Forest, it is those former teammates that he cheered alongside, and everyone else on campus, that encapsulates what he loved most about the university.
"Wake Forest is like a second family," said Paul. "I coach a lot of kids and when any of them who might go to Wake Forest get accepted I get to say, 'That's great. Now you're part of the family as well.' I think there's a unique bond in everyone that goes to Wake Forest. Maybe it's because of the size of the campus. After the first few months you've pretty much seen the faces of everyone on campus. It's a big family atmosphere and that's why everyone who leaves Wake Forest says they had a great time. I haven't heard one negative about the school."
While Paul is thankful for his time as a Demon Deacon, the Demon Deacons should be thankful for Todd Paul and what he helped build. The only issue is…he won't take credit for it.
A limited number of $60 tickets are available for sale to the general public for the Hall of Fame dinner on Friday, February 15. Contact Amy Fleet at fleetac@wfu.edu to reserve a ticket.
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