University of Georgia Athletics
A Quick Chat With ... Eric Diaz
April 09, 2015 | Men's Tennis
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
ATHENS, Ga. -- About 48 hours after an emergency appendectomy, Georgia men's tennis senior Eric Diaz gingerly eased his lean, 6-foot-2 frame into a director's chair for a quick chat Wednesday.
Diaz and Nathan Pasha are the eighth-ranked Bulldogs' only seniors and they will be honored this weekend as Georgia wraps up its regular-season home schedule, first Thursday against Arkansas and then Senior Day is Saturday against Ole Miss.
Eric likely won't be playing for a few weeks, but he can talk. In the following Q & A, he discusses his status for the rest of the season, playing for his father, Manuel Diaz, and much more:
Frierson: I guess the obvious question is, what happened with the appendectomy?
Diaz: I don't really know. We got back into town about 11:30 or 12 (Sunday night) and it just started killing me. Around 2 a.m. I realized this wasn't going away and went home, and then we went to the hospital 30 minutes later.
Frierson: What does this mean for the rest of your season?
Diaz: I'm going to miss this weekend and probably the SEC Tournament, as well. Who knows after that? I'm going to try to get back as quick as I can, but you never know. All I can do is hope it gets better.
Frierson: What's it been like playing for your dad and how has it changed your relationship?
Diaz: I would say it has. We've had some ups and downs, obviously, when I was younger and I was kind of coming into the team and I didn't really know how things work that well. And then I started to get a little better and I was almost to the point of getting into the lineup, but I wasn't in the lineup. I'm sure he had to make tough decisions regarding that, sometimes pulling me out -- sometimes I played and sometimes I didn't.
I think ultimately having to go through that and for me realizing how much it stunk for me to not get to play sometimes and how upset I was, me realizing that it was even harder for him to have to pull his son out -- he was probably dealt the tougher hand there.
I think overall it brought us closer, as I got more mature and actually realized the decisions he was having to make. As opposed to me just sitting there letting somebody else make the tough calls. I think it's been an awesome experience.
Frierson: Because of those tough decisions, were there times, maybe around the family dinner table during the holidays or something, when you might not have been as chatty as you'd ordinarily be? Or do you and Manuel do a good job of keeping tennis and family separated?
Diaz: There were some tense moments, some moments when I was kind of ticked at him and I'm sure he got fed up with me at times, as well. I feel like most of the time we were able to separate it pretty decently.
I never really stayed mad at him too long, and more and more I realized that he was doing ... it was his job. He's got to do what he's got to do.
Frierson: As someone who grew up in a house less than a mile from Georgia's courts and who has been around this program your entire life, were there many things that surprised you about going to UGA or playing for Georgia?
Diaz: Growing up around Athens, it is a college town and everything is kind of suited toward the college experience. I was pretty shocked when I came and realized just how different things really were as a student and a member of this team.
All the teams I've been on, there have been guys from all over the world. You get influenced by things that are not just American, but it's kind of from everywhere. It's all just like a mix; it's kind of just like a cluster of just a bunch of crazy guys. We've always had some pretty interesting personalities. It's been pretty awesome to be a part of that and see how it really works.
Frierson: When my brother Jack played at Georgia, my parents gave him space and let him be off at college, even though Georgia's courts were 250 yards from their house. You've seen your dad just about every single day for the past five years, but did you feel like you were off at school?
Diaz: It is different because I see my dad so often. I see him six days a week and my mom is always wanting me to go home about once a week. But they've really separated the whole college experience from being my parents. I thought they did an awesome job with that. They really let me be who I am and do the things that I wanted to do.
They've always been fairly laid back and allowed me to be who I wanted to be. They've been great.
Frierson: What's next after the NCAAs?
Diaz: Hopefully I'll be able to play and finish on a good note there. I'm probably going to do something within tennis and stay around the game. I can't really imagine myself being in an office all day, so I'd like to be outside, working with people and doing some tennis stuff.
John Frierson is a staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Hall of Fame at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. Follow him on Twitter: @TheFrierson and @ITAHallofFame.
