STANFORD, Calif. – Frankie Brennan has been named Stanford’s Peter and Helen Bing Director of Women's Tennis, Jaquish & Kenninger Director of Athletics Bernard Muir announced Wednesday.
A third-generation coach, Brennan has been part of 12 of Stanford’s record 20 NCAA championships. One of the most respected assistant coaches in college tennis, an eight-time ITA Northwest Region Assistant Coach of the Year and the 2003 National Assistant Coach of the Year, he spent 29 years on the staffs of his father, Frank Brennan, and Lele Forood, and was promoted to associate head coach in October 2010.
“Stanford University and its women’s tennis program has been a major part of my life since I was 10 years old and it is an honor and a privilege to be chosen to lead the program into its next chapter,” Brennan said. “I’d like to thank Lele Forood, who has played such an important role in my career, for her mentorship, guidance and friendship. She has been like a sister to me since the day I was born, and it has been an incredible journey to spend the last 24 years working alongside her. I’d also like to thank Bernard Muir for entrusting me with the leadership of Stanford women’s tennis and acknowledge our sport administrator Angie Jabir for all her unconditional support through the process.”
“Frankie’s promotion to head coach is well-deserved,” Muir said. “His contributions to Stanford Athletics and Stanford women’s tennis have been remarkable. He has been a critical part of the program’s outstanding accomplishments over the past 30 years and knows what it takes to succeed. Beyond the on-court achievements, the loyalty of our student-athletes and alumnae speaks to Frankie’s dedication to the personal development of the young women who come through the program. I’m ecstatic to have him as our new head coach.”
Since joining the staff in 1996, Brennan has enhanced Stanford's reputation as the country's top program by helping guide the Cardinal to a 700-71 overall record, 12 NCAA championships, 21 conference regular-season titles and six conference tournament crowns. During his tenure, Brennan has mentored 38 All-Americans.
The staff’s vocal and inspirational leader, Brennan's coaching acumen was on full display in 2018, as Stanford captured its 19th NCAA championship while matching its 2016 run as the lowest-seeded squad at No. 15 to win it all. In fact, prior to the 2019 NCAA crown, the Cardinal had embraced its status as a lower seed in each of its previous four NCAA titles, claiming the hardware as a No. 12 in 2015 and No. 8 in 2010.
Following Brennan’s elevation to associate head coach, Stanford also claimed four individual national titles. Nicole Gibbs repeated as the NCAA singles champion in 2013, following a historic 2012 campaign that culminated with Gibbs defeating Mallory Burdette in an all-Stanford singles final before pairing up one hour later to claim the doubles crown. Thanks largely to his efforts, Stanford produced three straight NCAA doubles champions from 2010-12.
“My family’s long-standing connection with Stanford women’s tennis goes back to when my father was named head coach in 1979,” Brennan added. “There is an immense sense of pride to be able to follow in his footsteps and continue what he started at Stanford. I have been fortunate enough to have been mentored by two of the greatest coaches in the history of women’s college tennis and work with amazing and driven student-athletes, creating lifelong relationships and helping them develop into strong and confident young women. I look forward to upholding the program’s championship legacy that the great coaches before me, like Anne Gould, my father, Frank, and Lele, have built.”
Brennan, son of legendary former Stanford head coach Frank Brennan, Jr., was a two-time all-conference player for the University of Redlands, where he helped the team to a Final Four appearance in 1993 and a fifth-place national finish in 1994. He was also a two-time all-conference honoree at Foothill Junior College, where he led the team to a semifinal appearance in the state championships in 1991 and a runner-up finish in 1992.
Brennan was head coach of the women's tennis team at the University of Redlands in 1995 before coming to work for his father in 1996. He prepped at St. Francis and Los Altos High schools, where he was a four-year letterwinner in both tennis and football. He finished his senior year on the East Coast at Mt. St. Joseph High School in Vermont, where he was a standout running back on their State Championship football team.
Brennan resides in San Carlos, Calif., and is the proud father of daughters Madeline and Francesca.