Ronnie Thomas is in his sixth year on Guilford's men’s basketball staff, and third as associate head coach. He started his college coaching career in August 2015 when he joined the Quakers' staff and took over as athletics compliance director in August 2016. He was promoted to associate head coach in October 2018.
During the 2018-19 season, the Quakers went 24-8 en route to the program's fourth ODAC Tournament Championship. Guilford made its sixth NCAA Division III Tournament appearance and advanced to the quarterfinals where the team was edged 82-79 by the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
The Quakers posted a 24-6 record in 2016-17 and made their fifth NCAA Division III Tournament appearance by winning the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Tournament for the third time in school history. Also the ODAC's regular-season champion, Guilford reached the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament. With Thomas' help, three Quakers earned All-ODAC honors.
Thomas played collegiately at Guilford's Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) rival Bridgewater College where he was a three-year captain for the Eagles. An Academic All-ODAC honoree, he holds the school’s career steals record with 153 and graduated as one of the school's career assists leaders. He earned a liberal studies degree with an emphasis on elementary education in 2014.
After graduation, Thomas played in Ireland's Wingfoot Premier League for the Ulster Elks. While playing abroad, Thomas started postgraduate studies in sports management from the University of Ulster. He also got involved with the Sport Changes Life organization, which teaches life skills and fostered positive relations between the city's Catholic and Protestant communities. Thomas also coached with the Basketball Northern Ireland Academy and Ireland's under-16 Girls' National Team.
Thomas grew up in Roanoke, Virginia, and graduated from Patrick Henry High School. He was an all-district and honorable mention all-region player on the basketball team.
Thomas and his wife, Brittany, were married in the spring of 2019.
(Updated 9/10/2020)
