NCAA Men’s Swim & Dive: Predictions & Storylines

What's up everybody?
Welcome back to another week men's NCAA preview and I have a friend.
I know I left Katie alone last week.
My flight was I was a victim of all of those TSA shutdowns.
So I'm happy to be here though.
I'm so happy.
Yes.
And we are not on the seven-meter one because our producer has um height uh fear, I'll say.
And and I just think this is a better shot on the five meter.
I would agree.
Yeah.
So we're still in the five meter giving you the best views.
Um, but just like last week, we're gonna go through some updates on just the feedback from women's, go through the rankings, go through some storylines, some names to watch, and then just some events that we're excited to watch.
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What do you want to start with?
Women's recap?
Let's start with women's recap.
I feel like we're not gonna take a ton of time on this because there's just been so much, but I feel like the hot button, as we know, is just feedback on the B Final, the broadcast, the format changes, the energy.
So, how did you feel like the energy was?
I mean, I I don't think that there's ever been a women's NCs that has kind of like blown me away with energy.
Um, so I didn't necessarily feel it from a stand crowd like standpoint.
Yeah.
Um sadly, the stands didn't change at all.
It's all just the parents and families and friends of the athletes.
So that is something we need to work on as a sport.
Um, there were obviously some teams that didn't come to finals, and that obviously the less people on deck, the less energy that there's gonna be.
Um, but from where I was kind of in my kiddie corner with ESPN, like I was like literally behind a curtain.
I was like, Where's Ficeful?
And it was like literally behind a curtain.
Um I didn't necessarily feel that big of a shift.
How about you?
Yeah, I mean, I'm coming off of my tenured experience at NCAA's with, but I mean, I did have last year in Seattle, and I I mean, credit to the alumni.
I feel like they were parents in the in the parking lot pre-gaming.
And I I I actually felt like there were times where I was like, I can't even hear myself think.
Like I felt like the energy again on deck in the stands was pretty electric.
And I felt like it gave to me, it's like, what energy do the athletes deserve?
And I felt like they were given that.
That's yeah, that's just my opinion.
You just have to hope that they felt that too.
That they felt that too.
That's coming from our opinion.
We obviously weren't on the blocks and in the pool, but I felt like it wasn't, I mean, way better than like a pro series or something like that.
So um, I don't my opinion is that at least at night, I didn't feel like the B final affected the energy.
Now, there are other things to talk about with that, but yeah, purely from an energy in the stand standpoint, I did not think it affected it.
Yeah.
How was it in prelims?
So prelims probably more electric than normal because it meant like so much.
Absolutely.
Like I felt like, you know, people stepped up.
I felt like there was definitely like a kind of a a weird energy, right?
Of athletes, you know, who got ninth where normally they'd be like, okay, well, at least I get a second swim.
Definitely some disappointments.
But I mean, people were there were events like the 100 Freestyle where you had to go under 47 seconds to make the fastest final ever.
So it definitely pushed the limits, I think, on where people had to be, especially I would say on the hundreds and two hundreds.
Yeah.
The 500, 400 IM, stuff like that were a little bit flat from from previous years, but again, uh, energy-wise, right?
We'll talk about kind of what that affects the swimmers on on just from their psyche, but I felt like prelims were pretty hype.
Yeah.
I I would love to get a perspective of like one of the athletes.
Yes.
And see what they thought about the energy.
Um, because we can talk about it all day long.
Doesn't matter what we think.
Yeah, it really doesn't matter.
It really doesn't matter.
It matters uh what the athletes think.
Um, and that was a huge part of this weekend.
A lot of athletes being affected.
A lot of athletes being affected, not getting second swims.
I think, you know, even some of the stars speaking out around just like, you know, for their their teammates' sake, not getting a second swim.
I I think the thing that I want to talk to you about, because you obviously have an inside look being a part of the broadcast, crushing it for ESPN on sidelines, like you always do.
Uh, but just the why behind this year, I think has still gotten a little muddled, and that's for ever whatever reason.
I think people are just moving as fast as they possibly can.
And so, in that, miscommunications can happen.
So, I guess just from your perspective, from your knowledge, why couldn't we have done the B final before the session started?
So, here, and like you said, from what I've gathered just through being a part of the broadcast team and what I've heard, if there's a B final of swimming, there has to be a B final of diving, right?
And so the issue was was, you know, we're trying to like not we, but like I guess like the people that are making right, the people that are making these decisions are trying to make this a more succinct, punchy broadcast.
And with B finals of swimming, that added another hour to broadcast.
So where now it was around two hours, it was about three hours before.
So that cut down, but then the issue was well, if we cut, if we keep the B final for swimming, there has to be the B final or the Constellation final for diving, which then butts up right to when we start warm-up for the swimmers.
Right.
And sometimes it's even going on during warm-up, um, which isn't great for divers.
Not that I'm a diver, but it's probably not helpful that like there's a lot of noise and stuff going on behind us.
So what I'm gathering is that they wanted to make sorry, I'm like trying to get all my thoughts out.
No, we can we can make edits as next year.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So this 120-minute broadcast, I think, is going to try to be pitched to ESPN for a live spot next year.
And there was a little bit of gray area with the B finals.
I don't even know if B finals being swung before finals was even considered, but if it was, I think there was worry around the diving prelims butting up past where we could have started the B finals at like five.
Am I saying all this right?
Oh no, a hundred oh yeah, it's it's a mouthful.
It was like a timing on the deck.
They didn't want to have overlap.
Um and then I think the question was well, if we have the B finals and have the swimmers uh start their B final at five, then when do we do the diving B finals?
Right.
Because if we're giving it to the swimmers, we have to give it to the divers.
And there's only so many hours in a day.
So I just think this, like you said, maybe it was a little rushed.
I I don't know.
I think well put, because it's like a mouthful and there's just so many intricacies.
I mean, and that is actually a great demonstration of there are so many intricacies.
And here on our podcast, we will never sit there and I mean we have we have our own personal opinions, but I think what's most important and what our responsibility is is to deliver as much information and factual truth as humanly possible.
And so I think like I I do know for a fact from people that the B Final before finals was considered.
It just yeah, it just sounds like, yeah, like no one knows, right?
No one, no one, even the powers, even the powers that be don't didn't know perfectly how the schedule was gonna play out.
And so I think it sounded like, okay, well, like you said, we don't want to have it butt up, like do the B finals and have it affect the broadcast or have it affect the A final.
And so it I I think for people who are concerned, athletes who are upset, it's just maybe just stay curious and allow a little more patience because this is year one.
No one is perfect year one.
And I I know for a fact that the powers that be are considering that this is something that is really impactful on team culture, on our sport.
And so I'm confident that they'll take that into account and have more information logistically.
So not only can we have a badass broadcast next year, we can also make everybody happy and allow the most opportunity possible for college athletes.
Yeah, and I think you said it best.
Like at the end of the day, this was to hopefully make it a sexier broadcast for ESPN to watch and be like, oh, this is punchy, it's just a finals.
The average viewer might not understand what a consolation final is.
So we're gonna try to pitch this to ESPN to get a live spot next year because they always package it up as a live show on the Sunday after NCAA.
So that was unaffected.
That will live on ESPN U until the end of time, hopefully.
But I think what what ESPN was going for was that actual live TV spot right during March Madness, you're up against a lot, so yeah, yeah, like you're never gonna bat a thousand at anything.
Um, and so I think this was, yeah, like you said, year one, they're getting the kinks out.
They've definitely heard a lot of opinions, um, and it's up to them to listen to those opinions or not.
Um, but this is like obviously what Katie and I have heard and experienced here on deck.
On deck.
And I think the last piece, because uh the other kind of challenge I heard from people is like, why not do the B finals during commercial break?
But to reiterate back what you said, right, you're thinking of just the swimming B finals.
But what about the diving B finals?
There isn't time for that.
So while that would that seemed like that's kind of when the chance would break out of like B bring back B, it's like, yeah, it's commercial break.
Awesome.
But like it's swimming and diving championships, and so that is that is the answer to that.
Yeah, it has to be fair across every athlete here.
Um, so yeah, I mean we'll we'll we shall see.
We shall see.
We shall see what what this week was.
We're all witnesses to this.
Correct.
All right, let's move on.
Um, let's talk about the rankings, which are so interesting because it's such a different landscape, completely opposite landscape than the women.
Yes.
Well, in what way?
In the fact that I mean, it's just totally different names, like Texas B.
As in like teams.
As in teams, yes, yes, yes, sorry, sorry, sorry.
Like, obviously, it's not women's names.
What's it mean like okay?
Um we are not.
No, no, no, I got that.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Um, but just you know, the and I obviously Texas is pr uh we're going off of projections in the site seat, mind you, which can of course change.
It's been shown in women's how it changed a little bit, but Texas being projected to win by over a hundred points.
Crazy.
But which is still crazy to think though that UVA was projected to win and won by over 200 points.
So that just just a little last last women mention, but I just had to give them their flowers.
Yeah, no, I agree.
Uh what Virginia did was insane.
But yeah, Texas obviously having the depth and the higher star power, I feel like that's almost locked unless something comes in.
Something crazy.
Like again, we never bat a thousand, it's never a guarantee.
Right.
Um, but I think the race for second is what I'm most excited for because there's multiple teams, kind of like the women's.
Yeah, yeah.
So it's it it's gonna be exciting.
The race for second.
It's gonna be exciting.
Yeah, the only place where, and I go back to when I talked with Coach Bowman a few months ago, and he I was like, How do you guys get better?
Right?
Like, how do you what do you think about when you're already won this one?
You your recruiting class is insane, you have depth and versatility, and he was like, our relays.
I guess like you know, last year he was like, There are a couple moments where we could have been so much better.
So I guess he's been pounding relay starts into them for the last year.
There's been a yell meter of like how many times he yells, and I guess it's gets reset when it comes to relay starts.
Bob means business.
Yes.
So just a side note there, take a look at their relay starts and see if there's been improvements.
Well, that's good.
I mean, he's coming from a school at ASU that is like known for their relays.
Yes.
So I'm sure he's probably missing an ASU relays is going to be one of the things that carries ASU through this meet.
Um, so I'm sure Bob's like, oh I gotta have what I used to have at ASU.
Yeah.
Which I'm not I have nothing Bob does surprises me anymore.
No.
Because it's it's so incredible.
Um so we'll we'll look to see Texas's relays, but Indiana is deep, Florida is deep.
Go gators.
No, no bias here on this.
Oh my god, no, never.
Talk about Florida because I feel like they like they're projected right now to be second.
Yeah, I I love that.
No, Florida looks good to me because we have our big stars.
We have two insane distance swimmers coming in, Jowdi and Hafnui.
Um, and that's that's big because we have somebody like Josh Leando and Johnny Marshall who can kind of handle the hundreds, Johnny going up to the 200.
Um, and then we have the distance swimmers.
So it's almost like we can cover every range.
Um, and our relays are great.
I uh I keep saying we.
That's like so I know I know sweet.
You can you can say we to the end of time.
Yeah, you're technically not supposed to, though.
Oh, well, if you're being unbiased.
That's we own the podcast.
We can do what we want.
You guys know I'm cheering for Florida, okay?
Yeah.
So, anyways, the Florida boys, um, they look good.
And I feel like they've kind of always been in the hunt.
Um, and it might be difficult.
Obviously, like there can be conspiracy theories around Texas not winning, and Florida could be an argument for being one of those teams.
Um, but I do think that if everything goes right for them and relays go well, a second place finish is absolutely in the cards for them.
Well, I feel like they were on the road to that last year, and then they got dequeued in that relay on night one.
Yeah, with the tour of freestyle relay, right?
Yeah, and I mean that happened to Cal night one at the winning.
I know.
Um, so it's yeah, I think that's a lesson that hopefully they learned last year.
And but it's so tough to have safe starts on night one.
Like, you just want to get the points.
It's so yeah, you're the adrenaline's there.
Um, but yeah, Florida, we talked at Arizona State, Indiana, Indiana, yeah.
It's so interesting because it's like Florida and ASU, they you look across the board, they have like a ton of depth, a ton of you know, range across all the events.
Obviously, Ilya needs to step up and perform in in his events, win hit the events, win Hunter Fly.
Yeah, we'll talk about that later.
But um, I feel like ASU has a ton of heavy pressure on the relays, double points, like if those relays don't pan out, the second place kind of eliminates.
Yeah, and they are an older team.
Yes, so if they're gonna do something special, I I feel like it has to be this meet because next year it looks like it will be a rebuilding year.
Yeah.
Um, and then Tennessee, I mean, Tennessee has a small but mighty team.
That's what I love about them.
You know, they have Guy Kyrie Bay, they have Nikolai Blackman, and and those guys are gonna do really well on the relays, but it's it's almost like how far can you stretch out those top end guys throughout a four-day meet?
Yeah, swimming every relay multiple times a session.
Um, it gets I mean, we saw it at the women's, it's tiring.
Yeah, but my night four, like I you're you got nothing left.
So you you almost have to to set yourselves up for day four and be in a really good position.
But listen, yeah, they're in Matt Kredich's hands.
There's there's nothing that's impossible when Matt Kreddich is at the home.
So yeah, and I I mean I'm not gonna go past Indiana without using my awesome metaphor that I came up with.
You're ridiculous.
So I now I've ruined it because I got too excited about it.
No, no, no, no.
So I I just think I actually I feel like the fact that Indiana they don't have like a ton of, oh, this person's gonna get first breakout stars, but they have a bunch of guys right in the middle of the pack.
And so I said I feel like they are wait for it, folks.
I was like, they're like a bunch of fire ants that are tired trying to take down a water buffalo.
That was my in normal human being terms that would be death by a thousand paper cuts.
But I wanted a more swimming-oriented animal or water buffalo?
It's water.
Okay.
Well, anyway, sorry, I came up with that at like 10 pm.
Thank you.
Well done.
But I guess the in all seriousness though, like, you know, the Indiana is on fire, their football team wins the national championships.
Like it, I just think they're they're gritty, right?
And I think that they, to me, that is what that metaphor represents.
And so they'll be in the hunt, but Florida ASU teams to beat for that second spot.
Yeah, and and it's it's kind of cool to think about a lot of the momentum, like Indiana and their basketball team and or football team, sorry, um, a lot of these men's teams obviously watched what happened at women's.
Right.
So if the women's team swam well, maybe that doesn't directly affect the men and what they're doing, but it certainly makes them feel good.
Yeah.
So a team like Cal men's team, after seeing what the Cal women's team did, feeling good.
Virginia men, they're young, but they watch what the women do, feeling good.
So it's stuff like that that you also want to kind of like take into account, like what teams look taught at women's, and will that kind of correlate over to the men's?
That's such a great point.
Yeah, because especially teams that train together, I remember always watching teammates like in the beginning of a meeting being like, Oh, thank God, they're swimming well.
Because then you're like, oh, I think I'm gonna swim well too.
We're swimming the same sets, we're the same tapers.
So that's a great point because I always based my confidence levels, whether that was a good, bad, or a different thing.
Sometimes it's bad.
Yeah, we're like, but if they have a yeah, obviously, so many women teams crushed it, and so huge advantage for the co what we cohabitating.
Yeah, yeah, the cohabitating teams.
The teams are combined.
We're having all the storyline.
Yeah, storyline to storyline stuff.
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We talked already about the Texas men going back to back, which again, the fact that it's like back to back, but for Coach Bowman would be three wins in a row with two separate teams, ASU and Texas, which I don't know.
I'd have to look that up.
Has that ever been done before?
I don't believe so.
Okay.
I think last year I remember interviewing him and saying something along the lines of you're the first coach to ever win back-to-back titles.
Right.
One at one school, one at the other.
But we'll we'll fact check that.
But regardless, if it has been done, it's not common.
No, it's so it hasn't been done many times.
No, or like in the 1920s, something crazy.
Like a big testament to Bob and his ability to coach and recruit.
And yeah, it's it's amazing.
And then Luca Orlando being out.
Oh, that broke my heart to see.
Poor kid.
I feel like he just cannot catch a break when it comes to injuries.
Um do you know what it is?
I don't.
I even shoulder related.
It's I I don't know for sure.
If I had to guess, based on past experience, it's shoulder related and just knowing, you know, this summer and uh Pampa.
That's the thing.
I feel like people could say, like, well, like, you know, it's NCAAs, like, go for broke, but like the the season doesn't end for Luca Orlando after men's NCAAs.
Pampax is huge for getting sp sipend, for making sure he's financially set up.
Like, that's just the reality of it's just the reality.
Yeah, and if he's getting information from trainers that are professionals at what they do and they're saying do not swim, as bad as, and that's the hardest thing ever.
You've been injured before, you've you've dealt with more than anybody almost.
I've been injured.
Yeah, if you're not cleared to swim, you're not cleared to swim.
And I mean, he's I'm sure heartbroken.
I don't talk to him personally, but that's that's not easy.
Yeah.
And obviously a huge hit uh on the you know, person on the personal side, I'm sure Georgia team is so sad, but on the professional side, it's it sounds like I mean, it sounds like it's not as impactful as I thought.
So it sounds like he was projected to score about 35 points, which is 13th overall in the men's scoring, which is still a a chunk, but I would have thought it would be a lot more.
A little more, yeah.
Yeah.
I mean, and him being out certainly opens up the tuner fly.
He's the American record clear record holder, clear favorite, world champion, like all of it.
Elyar Karoon, I'm sure, heard that news and probably didn't hate it.
But I think it it definitely opens the door for a lot more people in that tuner fly.
So yeah, bum bum for him, but wishing him a speedy recovery.
Always, absolutely, Luca.
And then I I feel like just like relays again, after hearing Bob talk about their focus on it, like I'm pumped for the 800-free relay.
Yeah, it's gonna be good.
Like Ohio State, Texas, like I just feel like everyone's gonna be gunning to have a great first night.
Yeah, first night sets the momentum, kind of like you said earlier.
Um, and those points are such a big cushion heading into that next prelim, especially at a meet where obviously the guys were able to watch how it happened and unfolded for the girls, but coming into a prelim session where you need to leave everything out on the line to get that second swim in the A final.
Um so kind of knowing that you're going in to that first morning session with a little cushion helps a lot.
Yeah, I mean, that was the the big difference for the prelims watching these relays.
Like I literally watched Texas women get ninths, win the prelims heat, and end up being fifth.
That was their foreign medley, right?
Yes, yeah, and so it's just like it's possible to get it done in the prelims.
Totally.
Um, and and make so it's like one of those things they're kind of like behind the scenes, like creeping up.
Yeah.
Um, but yeah, the relay energy in the morning was hype.
Yeah.
I mean, it has to be.
It has to be.
There's not that.
That is your timed final chance.
Yeah.
Um, and it doesn't matter if you don't normally get up in the morning, you have to do it here.
Which, like, uh people have said that, and I said it on the broadcast a ton.
I'm like, what is Saturday morning practice for most kind of brands across?
You put a suit on, you swim fast, it's the end of the week, you're tired.
So it's like, yes, it's a mindset shift, but also your body has done it a million times.
Yeah.
And these athletes are pros.
Right.
If if you're at NCAA's, especially at the top, top tier, you know what you're doing.
You you can handle it.
You can figure it out.
You can handle it.
Do you love it?
Maybe not.
No.
Like, did I love having finals in the morning in Beijing?
No.
But we figured it out.
But we figured it out because there's no other option.
Yeah.
I actually said that I brought that up.
I was like, yeah, we actually people who swam in the 2008 Beijing Olympics know exactly how these athletes know.
Yeah, like Michael Phelps won eight gold medals in the morning.
Mic drop.
It can be done.
Do you love it?
No, but it can be done.
Is it really painful physically?
Yes.
Do you need an extra 12 coffees?
Yes.
But you can do it.
All right, let's talk about names to watch.
There are so many.
I gotta, I mean, I feel like at this point people are like, what is your deal with Hoobie Koch?
But I love Hubi Koch.
I love him.
He is.
I actually shared the lane with him when I was at the Pro Series and I swam one practice with Bob.
How was that?
He's so fast.
I got laughed a lot.
No, but weren't you also pregnant?
Yes.
I know, but like early stages.
He won't say that.
First trimester is tough.
Not that I know, but no, I mean 100 back, 200 back, 200 IM.
Like he's just he was on fire last year.
He's shown zero signs of slowing down.
So I'm just I'm just he's gonna be challenged though.
So I'm excited to watch him.
He will be pressed to win titles.
Yes.
Um, which is what we want to see as swimming fans um and a community is I mean, we love obviously seeing a Ledecki type race that's won by like 12 minutes, right?
But it is really fun to see a close race.
Um, somebody that I'm looking forward to, go gators again, is Josh Leando.
It's his senior year, and he's just somebody that I have personally followed.
Um, obviously just being a gator, and because he's one of the kindest people that you'll ever meet, but he's he's a big point scorer for Florida.
He's 5300, 300 fly, one of the best that the NCAA has ever seen, and a part of all the relays.
So he has a very, very big weekend ahead of him.
Um he wasn't rested for SECs, maybe like a little, but what is that at Florida?
Yeah, what is that at Florida?
It's like, hey, we're gonna give you a 500 off of warm-up.
Yeah, exactly.
Now you're gonna feel great, but like wasn't shaved.
Um, so I'm excited to see what Josh does.
That's a personal watch for me.
Yeah, yeah.
And we're gonna talk to him tomorrow, so we'll get to kind of get a little vibe check on him.
Well, yeah, we'll see how he's feeling.
Um, I'm excited to, I mean, Ilya Karoon just seeing, I mean, just seeing his trajectory from last year to this year, I feel like he's just continued, not only in short course, but in long course.
And so, I mean, I feel like he has a lot of pressure on his shoulders for ASU.
50 free, 100 fly, 200 fly, the relays.
I'm we'll talk about in races to watch, but um he's gonna be just he's just fun to watch race.
He is.
I just love his like just his energy, the way he goes about.
He's humble, but also a gamer.
But also a gamer.
And like Tory Husk energy.
Yes, he does have Tory Husk.
Like so like goofy and like fun, but then behind the blocks, we're locked in.
Yeah, yes, yes, I love somebody else that I'm looking forward to is Rex Maurer, um, our 500 freestyle American record holder in the US.
He he hasn't touched that 404 that he did since fall of 2024.
Um, but if I know anything about Bob, that's obviously been on the radar, and I feel like this could be a meet where Rex maybe pops off.
And I he's obviously in other events like the 400 IM.
I mean, he had a killer lineup at SEC's.
He's one of those swimmers that can swim the mile, the five free, the four am, the two fly.
Like, he swims the worst events.
Yeah, like all the worst ones, but the but the the most badass ones for no bias over here, but none at all.
But you like take pride in it, and so I think that's one thing that I like kind of lean towards Rex in that I get it, um, I see it, and I hope he has an amazing 500 and other events, but I'll be definitely watching for his 500.
Yeah, I'd love to see a 403.
I would I would love I mean that'd be fun and like kind of pressure from afar.
So we just talked about this before we hopped on to record Luka Midakovic, a 16-year-old, went 405, which is the fastest in the nation.
All these guys have not been 405 this season.
So I would imagine if I'm that, if I'm Rex, I'm I'm still thinking about that a little bit.
It's probably on your mind.
Yeah.
So let's like I would love for these guys to blow that out of the water.
Um, you know, Luca's obviously coming to Texas, so he'll be in the training group, but I just think that's a little added asterisk.
Like, make sure you beat the 16-year-old, you know, real quick.
Especially what like it's great when you are the 16-year-old, which we've both been.
Yes.
But then when you're not, you're like you're like, uh, not not anymore.
I don't like it anymore.
I know, I know.
Yeah, that'll be great.
Um, Baylor Nelson, 400 IM, yeah, coming in top seed.
Um, he's another one that I personally love.
He swam for Chuck, who is my club coach.
Oh, I didn't know that.
That's from Mac, yeah.
And um, he uh Baylor came from AM, is now Texas, excuse me, and um looks really good.
He's coming in as top seed as 4 a.m.
I feel like somebody like you and I are always watching the 4 IM regardless, just because that's what we were.
Um, but I I again I we keep talking about these people again, a top-end swimmer from Texas.
There's yeah, I mean most of this, a lot of this list is Texas.
Yep.
I'm about to say another Texas, Will Modulin in the 100 and turn to backstrokes, particularly the 100 backstrokes.
His underwaters are amazing, unbelievable.
And I every single person, whether it was Simone or Summer or the guys, like they do these 25s underwater with fins on 15 second interval.
15 on 15.
By the way, for a second, when I talked to Simone about this, I I didn't she didn't clarify fins, so I was like, so it's without fins?
Like, how are you even within?
Are you a dolphin?
Like literally, but yeah, they they do this, it's like a weekly thing that they do.
Reagan talked about it, and so I mean, people, if you watchers watch the underwaters, and it's credit to 25's underwater, like molt like 20 on 15-second interval.
And I just think, you know, the question is can he break the NCAA and American record again?
We shall see.
Um, he was second at SEC's again, and I feel like he's one of those guys that is just always just there, but not winning.
Um and so he's in those races with the likes of Ilya and Josh, and and it's he's just swimming events that are absolutely stacked.
Yeah.
But he's in them, he's at the top, and he's somebody to credit for those events being so fast.
And I think that's so cool.
Like as an athlete, you have to remind yourself you are part of the reason why that event is so good.
And Guy is part of that.
He pushes all these guys, he keeps them honest.
Um, and I he's somebody that I'm always like cheering for and loving to watch.
Yeah.
Yeah, he has good energy.
I know I always say, like, for the for the stands and for the people watching, we always are like, oh, we want these tight races and we love the field.
And I was like, as an athlete, you're not like you're like Yeah, you're like, I don't want that.
Yeah, you're like, I want to just be crushing everyone.
I want to win by like four seconds.
Reverse, like now coming out of it, I'm like, oh yeah, like I want everyone to be super tight.
And like that, you're like, hell no.
I know it's crazy how quickly that switch flips from when you're like on the dry side of the sport.
Oh yeah, when you're yeah, when you're in it, you're like, no, thank you.
Nope.
Um men's tuned or freestyle specifically, uh, Remy Fabiani um of ASU.
I just I mean, I think there's gonna be multiple guys under 130.
I think this men's tuned freestyle is kind of like anybody's race.
Yeah.
It's it could be anybody.
Henry McFadden crushed you at his conference meet.
I mean, yeah, I just feel like similar to the women, you have three women under 140.
Like, first time ever.
It's so inflation.
It's real.
Inflation is real.
It's real.
Again, loving it as a spectator.
Athletes probably not loving it.
They're like, can everybody slow down?
Yes, yes.
But that's just that's just gonna be a great one.
But yeah, my top.
I think so.
Yeah, I think we hit we hit a lot of good ones.
Um, events, kind of already mentioned it.
Men's 4am for me, obviously, because I love the 4am, but also the top four entries in this event are separated by 0.4 seconds.
That's insane informed I am.
Yeah, so you have Baylor Nelson, Joshua Bay, the freshman out of Indiana.
We didn't even talk about him really yet, but Indiana's freshman class is just like all-star.
Um, Lauren Wigginton, sophomore out of Michigan, it's a young event, and then Lucas or Cooper Lucas out of Texas, a sophomore as well.
So that's that's gonna be a fun event.
But do you think because people talk about it all the time with like having to crush it in prelims?
Do you think being a freshman is a pro or a con for these athletes in terms of experience?
Uh for me it was a con.
I did not have a good freshman year experience at NCAA's because it is the first time, and I had already been to the Olympics, and this isn't about me, but this is my perspective, I guess.
It's helpful.
Like I been to the Olympics, so I kind of understood what it meant to be on a team, um, but it's still an individual at the Olympics, it's there's no point system, right?
So the NCAAs is pretty much everybody's first real exposure to you have a job, and it's to score points for your team.
Yeah, and if you don't, that hurts everybody.
So there's so much more pressure that you're not used to.
And it could go the other way too.
You could have the freshman that's like totally Claire Weinstein, yeah.
Yeah.
I mean, kudos to her.
She just rises to the occasion, and maybe they don't like read into it, maybe like something like I did.
Um, but if you were asking me and my experience, it was a disadvantage.
Okay.
Yeah, I mean, I just I also bring up that question because it there's even more pressure on these guys.
Like they cannot, there's no break in prelim swim.
Like they have to be top eight.
And so uh that's more what drew me is like kind of like at the Olympics, where it's like, okay, there's really no lead-in to this.
You better go right on your best time or right just off it if you want a second swim.
You yeah, you need to be so dialed on what everybody else is doing, which is also a little like uncomfortable because you want to focus on what you're doing, but you're also very dialed into what the heats before you are doing.
And talk about team race, two of those top four entries in the 4 a.m.
are Michigan and Indiana, two teams that are gonna be in the hunt for second behind Texas if Texas is doing what they're supposed to be doing on paper, right?
So, and they're young, freshmen and sophomore, yeah.
So which bodes well for years to come.
Absolutely, yeah, yeah.
Um, okay, I I just love watching who be again, who be fan club over here, but 200 backstroke, Johnny Marshall versus who be coach, I think is gonna I just feel like the hundred is just so quick.
I mean, I'm I'm excited for that race too, but watching kind of how that plays out in terms of strategy-wise between the two of them, I'm really looking forward to that race.
Yeah, especially because the SEC's Johnny won.
Yeah.
Um, but whoby has that back half, and maybe with a little bit of rest, Hubi will be able to be out a little bit quicker, whereas Johnny Marshall goes.
Yeah, well, that's why, yeah.
He goes, Yeah, it's that's gonna be an amazing race.
That'll be really, really good.
Um, 53 is always a good race because it's so quick.
Um, but all top eight are within 0.2 seconds of each other.
You have tied top two seeds, Josh Leando, Ilya Karoon.
Um, that's gonna be an insane race because that's an individual title that anybody in that eight can honestly realistically grab.
Yeah you know, so that's that's an event I'm looking at.
We talked a little bit about the 500 with Rex, but someone that we didn't mention yet that I saw break out in a huge way at the Austin Pro Series was uh Ryan Ehrisman.
Oh yeah.
Like I feel like he's from Cal.
He's like a little bit of a gamer, like he's he was racing Luke Hobson, Kieran, like all Olympians, and it didn't matter at all to him.
And I don't know, like I I know he's he's not ranked, I think he's ranked third.
I could be wrong on that.
Yeah, we can check.
But I don't even actually, I think he's ranked even lower than that, to be honest with you.
But I was ranked 12th in the five free.
Even better.
So Ryan Harrison ranked 12th, but I just I don't know.
I have like a little feeling, I could be wrong, but I just feel like he's poised 346 in the 400 free, unrested.
So pretty fast.
I I I don't know.
I I just have a feeling that he's gonna challenge those guys.
Um, but it's I mean, it's a it's a weighted heat, and it's I think it's gonna be a blood battle.
It's a very deep field, very deep field, and Cal is a team that is going to be like the silent killers, they're quiet and they're deadly, and you don't necessarily see them at the top of every event, but they have so much depth, and like you said, the writing is on the wall with Ryan Arrisman.
Yeah.
She's going three for 46 midseason.
What's this five three gonna look like as a freshman?
We don't know.
We don't know, yeah.
Yeah, lots of I mean, I feel like even I said that with Claire coming into it.
Like I had I had no idea she was drop 15 seconds in the mile, you know.
So, so fresh freshmen are actually dangerous in that way because you don't like they have such momentum and area of opportunity that they could they could just break out.
Yeah, I agree.
I I think this meet will be full of very young fast swims.
I think that's that's one of the themes for me.
Yeah, I think those were my races.
I think you had one more, maybe.
Those were my uh no, other than just I just feel like Ilya and Josh, like Ilya Karoon and Josh Lando come together in multiple events.
So it's like I love I love again as a spectator when there's kind of this trade-off of like Ilya wins the hunter fly, Josh wins the 50 free, who's winning the 100 free, you know, and it's not like it's just those two, but just a little bit of a rivalry pair.
I feel like Josh and Ilya have always had that with also Jordan Crooks, and now Jordan Crooks is out of it, so they're always like one of those three is always gonna be on top, and it's it's made it very interesting to watch.
For sure.
Um, we get we got an exciting we have, yes.
I am looking forward to it.
I'm looking forward to all the alumni coming back.
I can't wait to see the cow bears and their suits, and their bear suits, look out for that.
Um, but just excited to see what comes of this meet.
And again, what I said last time is just like what this brings for next year, you know?
Right.
It's there will be a lot of feedback given, there will be a lot of learning happening.
Um, and I hope that there's a world where everybody can be happy.
Right.
I know that never really like in what world is there.
That world does not exist, but I hope that there can be compromises made for everybody, and everybody is deserving of that.
Yeah, you know, I think athletes are deserving of a B final.
Um, I also think the broadcast needs to be punchy, like there are two sides to every coin, and it's just like how do we meet in the middle and make it make sense?
Yeah, 100%.
We'll see.
Well, thank you.
Thank you for having me.
Why you're thanking me?
This is my honor.
I get to sit next to Katie Huff on a five.
Are we on the five or the three?
We're on the three.
I I I wonder.
Were you disappointed about the three?
No, I just like I think it's cooler, higher, but I also think the views are better here.
I feel and we're like at a spa, like you know how the jets go.
It does sound like we're at a spa.
We needed that after after the whole week and craziness, and we're we're about to start again.
But I'm I'm freaking pumped.
It's always a blast.
Always a blast with you.
So Everyone, tune in, screen your head off, enjoy, and we'll be back next week.