By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Foundation

Sixteen years ago, when Benjamin Becker came to the U.S. for the first time, he initially struggled with the language barrier and even the team tennis concept as a Baylor freshman.

Now, back in the classroom at 36 years old after winning more than $4 million in 12 years on the pro tennis tour, the three-time All-American and 2004 NCAA singles champion is having to "learn to learn again."

"It takes me a long time right now just to process everything and get used to the new internet and things we didn't have when I was here before," said Becker, part of the 2017 Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame class that will be inducted Oct. 20. "It's been a tough adjustment, but I feel like every week is getting a little better. I would hope sooner rather than later I get back into my rhythm I had when I was here the first time."

Becker, who was basically one semester short of earning his business degree when he turned pro in 2005, said his plan was always to return and "finish what I started."

"First off, for myself, of course, because it's great to have a degree from Baylor University, a great school," he said. "But also, to show my kids that once you start something you should finish it, and how I value my education. I don't want them to come back to me in 15 years and say, 'Hey, you didn't finish, why should I?' It gives me better leverage in winning that fight."

Part of Baylor's first NCAA team championship in 2004 and arguably the best four-year run of any team sport in school history, Becker still holds the program records for career singles (141) and doubles (104) victories. In his four seasons, Baylor swept the Big 12 regular-season and tournament titles, had an overall record of 120-7, never lost a conference match and added the 2005 ITA National Indoor championship.

A native of Orscholz, Germany, Becker was playing in some satellite tour events but wasn't get recruited at all until he got a call from then-Baylor assistant coach Sam Winterbotham in April 2000.

"It was actually the perfect time, because I was playing in a tournament in Rome and had just lost and was trying to decide what I was going to do next," Becker said. "They have a sports university in Cologne that I was interested in. But then, I got the call and he said, 'Are you interested in college?' And I said yes right away. 'Send me the information, I'm coming.'''

Fellow German Markus Hornung was part of a freshman class with Becker, which "kind of made me feel better about leaving home, knowing someone else here."

Benni admits that he struggled with the language barrier at first, even though he had taken English classes at his high school in Germany.

"At first, you're pretty scared and you can't really have a conversation yet, because you're lacking the words and the confidence," he said. "But, without really knowing, you kind of get into it and understand the slang words, the dialect and everything."

Adding 2005 NCAA singles champion and Hall of Fame inductee Benedikt Dorsch the next season, the Bears went 28-2 and lost to Vanderbilt in the 2003 NCAA quarterfinals.

"I felt like that team actually had a great chance of winning it," Becker said. "I felt like we were the best team. But Zoltan Papp got hurt, just before the NCAA Tournament. He was our No. 3 guy, but he broke his hand and there was no way for him to play. If he would have been 100 percent, we would have had a great chance to win."

The Bears' time came the next year, with one of the most dominant runs in NCAA history. They won five of their six NCAA Tournament matches by identical 4-0 scores, including UCLA in a buzz-saw final in Tulsa, Okla.

"Everyone was on top of their game and everyone stayed healthy, which was the most important thing," Becker said. "And everyone was pulling together. The team had a great bond, the chemistry was great, and we pushed each other. I definitely felt like we deserved to win that one and should have won it again in '05, but that's how sports go sometimes."

Inexplicably, Becker pulled off a rare double six days later when he defeated Tulane's Michael Kogan in the NCAA singles final, 6-4, 7-6(8).

"It's insane. I honestly don't know how I won that next day," Becker said of his first-round win over Duke's Ludovic Walter, the day after the Bears claimed the team title. "For years, you've worked for this one thing, and you feel so relieved, so happy. I still wanted to win, but I really didn't care. Then, when you get to the quarterfinals, you're like, 'Hey, I've got a chance to win this. I'm going to go for it.' But, it was never my goal to win the individual title."

To this day, even after a pro career that saw him ranked in the top 100 in 11 of the last 12 seasons and included a historic win over former world No. 1 Andre Agassi (in his last match) at the U.S. Open, Becker still ranks the 2004 NCAA team championship as his greatest tennis memory.

"When people ask me about the most fun match you've ever been a part of the, the most emotional you've been on court and the most excitement, it's definitely the NCAA Tournament," he said. "Winning the Agassi match was great, but you're by yourself. And I felt awkward at the time. I was embarrassed. They kicked me off the court so that he could do his speeches, and then I got to come back and sign autographs.

"My freshman year, coming from Germany, you don't know what the NCAA and the Big 12 means. But, once you see how much it means to the school and everybody else, you're like, 'Oh, OK.' And then you achieve it, with your friends . . . it's like you have that one chance. I've never felt happier on the court than I was that day."

Becker's run at the 2006 U.S. Open, which included the third-round win over Agassi, vaulted him into the top 100 for the first time. And other than 2011, when he had two elbow surgeries and fell to No. 304, he finished in the top 100 in all but one other season.

His benchmark rankings came at No. 38 in 2007 and 2009, following his lone ATP Tour title at the Ordina Open in The Netherlands, and a career-best 35th in 2014 when he made it to the finals of that same grass-court tournament.

"Beating Agassi on one day, it can happen, you can have a great day," he said. "Winning a tournament is much tougher, because you have to win at least five matches in a row against really good players who also won, and be the last guy standing out of everybody. That's tough to do. But getting into the top 40 à ¢Ã¢' ¬" you can do it once, you can have a great year, even luck of the draw. Doing it on three different occasions, with a lot of time in between and fighting back from some injuries, that's something I'm very proud of."

Injuries certainly played a part in Becker's decision to retire this year, particularly the pelvis injury he suffered last year, but he also wanted to spend more time with his family. Benni and his wife, Kristin (formerly Ruef, a soccer player at Baylor), have two sons, Collin, 5; and Connor, 2 ½, and expecting another boy in January.

"They came and traveled with me some, but I still missed a lot of nice moments that you will never get back," he said. "When my hip didn't get any better, and then the doctors didn't give me any hope that it would get any better, I kind of decided I would play this summer and see where I was standing. Yes, it was said, but it was time to quit."

Becker is working as a volunteer coach for the men's tennis team this semester, while taking 16 hours toward a management degree, and will finish with an internship in the spring.

"I think I will stay in tennis, I just don't know what side," he said. "I'm kind of enjoying the college culture and team spirit. I obviously enjoyed it as a player, but I wasn't sure what it would be like on the other side."

Joining Becker in the 2017 Hall of Fame class are Steffanie Blackmon off the 2005 women's basketball national championship team, football players Ron Francis and Bill Hicks, women's golfer Melanie Hagewood Willhite and track stars Jeff Jackson, Bill Payne and Jennifer Jordan Washington.

Tickets to the Hall of Fame Banquet, which will be held at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 20, in the Brazos Room at the Waco Convention Center, are $50 per person and may be purchased by contacting the "B" Association at 254-710-3045 or by email at tammy_hardin@baylor.edu. Table sponsorships (seating for eight) are also available for $750 (individual) or $1,000 (corporate).