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Gulf Coast’s Thornton Wins Dave Williams Award For Second Straight Year
Mississippi Gulf Coast Golf Head Coach Brad Thornton added to his legendary legacy with the Bulldogs after he was named the 2025 Dave Williams National Coach of the Year for the second straight season.
In Thornton’s fourth year as head coach of the program, Gulf Coast claimed the NJCAA Division II Men’s Golf Championship in Plymouth, Ind. last month, defending its title after they won last season. During the 2024-25 season, MGCCC swept through the MACCC and won all five regular-season events they competed in, as well as the MACCC championship tournament.
Overall, the Bulldogs claimed 10 of the 13 tournaments they participated in, losing to just two other programs in their division throughout the entire season. Coach Thornton spoke about what the award means to him.
“It’s hard to put into words how much that award means,” Thornton said. “It’s great recognition, but I’m so thankful for the players that we’ve had to allow us to be successful. Those guys trust me and the plan we had. It’s nice to see all these awards stacking up, but really, it was the hard work that was put in throughout the entire year that led to it.”
As far as the student-athletes who excelled this season for the Bulldogs, Stanley Campbell won NJCAA medalist and finished at the top of the National Collegiate Golf Rankings. Campbell, John Mark Mills, and Peyton Russell were selected for the PING All-American Team. Another notable achievement was Ludvig Behring claiming All-American after finishing in sixth place at the national tournament.
Coach Thornton sounded off on how proud he was of his squad.
“They committed to the process and stayed focused through all those events from the time they started in August as freshmen and all the way through this May,” he noted. “It wasn’t always perfect golf, but at the end of the day, I never had a question about one of those guys putting forth the effort that was needed to be successful. Hard work pays off, and I’m really proud of them.”
Thornton has come a long way since first joining the Bulldogs coaching staff in 2016. In addition to winning the prestigious Coach of the Year award, he also still plays professional golf, making it to the final round of the US Open Qualifying in 2023 and 2024.
