It is often said that history repeats itself8212;a statement that has been embodied by the Utah swimming and diving teams for the past several years.
During that span, there has been a trend among the teams8212;the women have been in competition for the top of the conference, while the men have struggled to collect wins throughout the season.
For the Utah teams, success begins with recruiting, an area the men have struggled with in the past.
“Once you build a history, it gets easier to recruit, and that’s a challenge for us on the men’s side,” said head coach Greg Winslow. “Back in the 1970s with Don Reddish, Utah swimming was the place to be and we have to get that mystique back.”
Not only has the women’s team been more successful in the past, making it easier to recruit talented athletes, but the talent pool for women is bigger and deeper than it is on the men’s side.
In the United States, elite male swimmers aren’t as abundant as elite female swimmers, making it difficult for the Utah coaches to recruit top talent.
“In the United States, for guys, there are a lot of guys playing football and basketball and soccer, and football takes so many that you’re losing your athletes right off the top,” Winslow said. “Men’s programs are being cut left and right due to budget cuts, so a lot of high school men are choosing not to swim.”
Despite the challenges facing men’s swimming, Winslow is optimistic about upcoming seasons and the athletes who have been recruited since he took the head coaching position two years ago.
“We’ve got a great freshman class this year and next year we’ve already signed seven guys from all around the country and even one from Hong Kong and Stockholm, Sweden,” Winslow said. “We’re starting to get that flavor versus what we had before, (which) was a lot of homegrown talent that we picked off the trees. We are really trying to expand and reach out and grab some more talent.”
After last season’s last-place finish in the Mountain West Conference, the men are working toward a better finish this season to help build their program’s image. Although the men swimmers have yet to get a win, they are hoping the weekend’s two big home meets will change things.
“I think we are a win away from being very competitive in this conference,” Winslow said.” “One win just for our own personal egos and confidence will take us to the next level and we’ve got to find one this weekend. We need as much support from the local Utah fans as we can get.”
The men’s and women’s teams will both take on Wyoming today at 5 p.m. and Air Force on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the Ute Natatorium.