Rhodes Athletic Hall of Fame
Coach Bill Cochran was the architect of the modern-day Rhodes Men’s Golf program and led the team to unparalleled success in his 19-year tenure as Lynx Head Coach.
Before arriving at Rhodes, Coach Cochran retired from a very successful 38-year business career with Cleo Wrap Inc. in Memphis, where he cemented the sales and communication skills that ultimately made him a great recruiter for Rhodes.
During 15 of his 19 years as coach, the Men’s Golf team was ranked in the top 25 of the NCAA Division III National Rankings. The Men’s Golf team participated in the NCAA Championship in 2006, finishing eighth, and again in the years 2007, finishing sixth; 2014, finishing 13th; 2015, finishing 20th; 2016, finishing ninth; 2017, finishing eighth; and 2018, finishing 17th. Such a string of team successes had not been seen for the Men’s Golf program before Coach Cochran’s arrival.
The Rhodes team also holds the collegiate record for the lowest score ever posted by four players in collegiate golf. In 2004, at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, on their Scarlet Course, Rhodes posted scores of 63, 65, 65, and 65 for a combined score of 258, 22 under par.
The highest year-end ranking came during the 2006-2007 season, when the team finished fourth. In 2016-2017, the team finished with a ranking in the No. 6 slot nationally, and the Lynx finished the 2018-19 season ranked 21st.
Coach Cochran was selected as the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Coach of the Year for the 2006-07 season and the new Southern Athletic Association (SAA) Coach of the Year for the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons.
He became a favorite of many Lynx student-athletes because of his love for all Lynx sports and his enthusiasm for Rhodes. He was the “Voice of the Lynx” for many years as the public address announcer for Men’s and Women’s Basketball, and his deep voice made Mallory Gymnasium come alive.
In recognition of his accomplishments as a Head Coach, Rhodes is honored to induct Bill Cochran into the Rhodes Athletic Hall of Fame this 25th day of October, 2025.
