NORMAN, Okla. - Baylor men's golf assistant coach Ryan Blagg is the recipient of the 2017 Jan Strickland Outstanding Assistant Coach Award presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf, the Golf Coaches Association of America announced Tuesday.

The GCAA presents the Strickland Award annually to the NCAA Division I, II, III, NAIA or NJCAA assistant coach that, among other things, has excelled in working with his student-athletes both on the course and in the classroom.

"I am so thrilled for Ryan," third-year head coach Mike McGraw said. "He is one of the best coaches I have been around. Our players have wanted this for Coach Blagg for three years. His impact on the program has been dramatic."

Blagg, who is in his fifth year at Baylor, was a finalist in each of the last two seasons. He helped Baylor to the 2016 NCAA Championships, the program's first championships berth since 2010, and has guided the Bears to NCAA Tournaments in all five seasons.

This season, Blagg has teamed with McGraw to lead the Bears to the first No. 1 national ranking in program history. Baylor has won three tournament titles and recorded seven top-three finishes, while posting a 107-22 combined head-to-head record. Baylor enters the 2017 NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championship as the No. 2 seed at the Stanford (Calif.) Regional, which runs May 15-17.

Blagg is the 15th winner of the Strickland Award and the third from the current Big 12 Conference. McGraw won the inaugural award while he was an assistant coach at Oklahoma State in 2003, and Texas' Ryan Murphy was honored in 2013.

BU players have also had success in the classroom, with a Big 12-best seven student-athletes earning Academic All-Big 12 recognition, including a school-record six first-team honorees.

As the Strickland Award recipient, Blagg will have the opportunity to further his professional development by receiving an invitation to the TaylorMade-adidas Golf Kingdom in Carlsbad, Calif. TaylorMade-adidas Golf has sponsored the Strickland Award since its inception in 2003.

JAN STRICKLAND AWARD WINNERS
2003 - Mike McGraw, Oklahoma State
2004 - Bowen Sargent, Tennessee
2005 - Greg Robertson, Purdue
2006 - John Knauer, Arizona
2007 - Andy Bischel, UNLV
2008 - Walter Chun, California
2009 - Brian Sharp, Virginia Tech
2010 - Michael Burcin, South Carolina
2011 - Christian Newton, Georgia Tech
2012 - Jim Anderson, Texas A&M
2013 - Ryan Murphy, Texas
2014 - Chris Hill, Houston
2015 - John Handrigan, Florida
2016 - Andrew DiBitetto, North Carolina
2017 - Ryan Blagg, Baylor