Allen, 28, helped guide the 1 Longhorns to a banner year that included the NCAA Central Region championship and a fifth-place finish at the NCAA championship, their highest finish in five years. The squad ended the season ranked No. 8 in the final MasterCard Collegiate Golf Rankings. The 1998-99 team had its best showing in six years, as it earned three tournament victories and finished in the top three in seven of its 13 competitions.

Well-known for his rapport with collegiate players, Allen handled many of the day-to-day operations for the Longhorns and assisted head coach John Fields with scheduling, recruiting and coaching at practices and tournaments.

"It is such a blessing to have the opportunity to take over the best women's golf program in the country right now," said Allen. "It's a great opportunity to move to Tucson and to be involved with [UA athletics director] Jim Livengood and the rest of the Arizona staff.

"I'm looking forward to getting to know the Arizona players and to keeping the winning tradition alive there," he said. "[Texas head coach] John Fields was a great mentor to me, but we all feel good about this decision, and I'm excited about becoming a Wildcat."

Prior to his arrival at Texas, Allen spent five years as both director of tournament operations and tournament director for the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) in Roswell, Ga. While there, he was responsible for planning and executing 47 national junior golf tournaments and other AJGA events. He oversaw all AJGA tournaments and was responsible for the supervision of eight tournament directors, as well as the hiring and training of 24 summer interns.

"We're very excited to have Greg join our program," said senior associate athletics director Kathleen LaRose. "Greg has a background with one of the top programs in the country, and his involvement in the AJGA gives him an excellent recruiting edge."

A Kentucky native, Allen graduated from Murray State University in Murray, Ky., with a bachelor's degree in journalism in 1993. As a student, Allen worked in the sports information office at Murray State, where he was a liaison for numerous sports including golf. Prior to graduation, Allen worked two summers as a communications intern for the AJGA, where he was responsible for all on-site media relations at 10 national junior golf tournaments.

Allen's wife Julie is a former swimmer for Arizona State who competed in the 1988 Olympic Trials. The couple has two daughters, five-year-old Maggie and one-year-old Mollie.