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Chris Woodruff won the NCAA men's singles title for his hometown Tennessee Volunteers as a sophomore in 1993, then turned pro and played nine years on the ATP Tour, getting as high as No. 29 in the world. He won two singles titles, reached the quarterfinals of the 2000 Australian Open and beat seven world No. 1 players, including Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi.

Woodruff retired in 2002 and returned to Tennessee to get his degree in psychology, thinking he might move toward a career in the FBI. But while in school again, Woodruff was approached by then-Tennessee head coach Chris Mahony, a former Vols teammate, about working with the men's team as a volunteer. Woodruff soon joined the staff full-time and has been with the program ever since.

Now holding the title of associate head coach under Sam Winterbotham, Woodruff has become known one of the best coaching tacticians in college tennis. He has sat courtside with three former No. 1-ranked college singles players - John-Patrick Smith (2010), Rhyne Williams (2011) and Mikelis Libietis (2013). Woodruff was the ITA National Assistant Coach of the Year in 2013.

TennisRecruiting.net recently caught up with Woodruff and asked him about his coaching career and his days as a pro and an NCAA singles champion. In this question-and-answer, Woodruff talks about why college coaching appeals to him, offers some advice to junior players wanting to play at the next level and sheds light on his short-lived infatuation with the FBI, the career that might've been.

Questions and Answers

Tennis Recruiting (TR): This is about your 15th year of coaching? How did it come about that you went from tour to college tennis?

Chris Woodruff (CW): It was serendipitous really. When I got off the tour, I just wanted to decompress and process my next steps. At the time, Chris Mahony and Michael Fenn were the coaches, and I signed on as a volunteer assistant. I didn't have a college degree because I turned pro in 1993. I always told myself that when I get done with my career, I'm going to go back and get my degree. For me, it was all about trying to help my alma mater and have an impact on kids' lives and pass along the wisdom I'd gained.

TR: What was your degree?

CW: I got degree in psychology. At the time, a long time ago, I thought I wanted to go into the FBI and thought a psychology degree would be a good degree to have if I wanted to go down that career path. But the more I was around the college environment - it's so vibrant, especially at UT - it became an easier decision once I was able to sink my teeth into the job and be around everyone.