CANTON, Ga. - Keenan Hickton, the head men's golf coach at Sewanee has been tabbed as the 2026 NCAA Division III Dave Williams National Coach of the Year.
The 2026 NCAA Division III Dave Williams National Coach of the Year Award is presented by Golf Pride Grips.
Hickton is Sewanee’s first Dave Williams Award recipient, guiding the Tigers to eight top-five finishes in 2025-26, including in all seven of their spring tournaments, and two victories. Sewanee finished fourth at the NCAA Division III Men’s Golf Championship on May 15 for its highest finish at any national championship in program history. In his second season as Head Men’s Golf Coach, Hickton’s Tigers won the season-opening Gate City Invitational by one stroke on September 16 and their second consecutive Southern Athletic Association (SAA) Championship by 13 strokes on April 26. Sewanee had two conference championships since 1995 prior to Hickton’s arrival. The Tigers were led on the course by four PING All-Region IV performers for back-to-back SAA Coach of the Year Hickton. For a program that had five PING All-Region honors from 2010 to 2024, Sewanee has earned eight PING All-Region IV honors in Hickton’s two years at the helm.
The Southern Athletic Association Champions set a new championship record with the lowest overall score at an SAA Championship while Hickton captured Coaching Staff of the Year accolades selected by his peers.
About Golf Pride Grips
For over seven decades, we’ve been the global leader in golf grip innovation and technology, from the invention of the slip-on grip to groundbreaking advancements in cord with our new Brushed Cotton Technology (BCT®) to the introduction of the hybrid category of grips. Today, Golf Pride® has laid claim to more major wins than any other grip company. More than 80% of Tour professionals choose to play our grips and not one is paid to do so. And in this age of multi-million dollar endorsement deals, that’s the strongest endorsement of all. So, whether you’re a Tour pro playing a major, a rising amateur, or an everyday golfer, you can rest assured knowing you’re playing the #1 Grip in Golf. To learn more about Golf Pride®, go to
golfpride.com.
For more information on all things SAA, visit the websites of any of the participating schools, or go to the SAA's home on the internet at
www.saa-sports.com. Be sure to stay up to date on all ofyour Southern Athletic Association news by following @SAA_Sports on Twitter (X) and @SAA_Sports on Instagram.