Six Michigan Coaches Named CSCAA 100 Greatest Coaches
12/7/2021 8:04:00 PM | Men's Swimming & Diving
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America's (CSCAA) announced its 100 Greatest Coaches on Tuesday (Dec. 7), with six distinguished Michigan coaches being named to the list that represents the last century of collegiate swimming.
Current head coach Mike Bottom as well as Dick Kimball, Matt Mann, Jim Richardson, Gus Stager and Jon Urbanchek were named to the prestigious list representing 12 national championships, 44 men's Big Ten Championships, 17 women's Big Ten championships and over 50 Olympians during their careers at Michigan.
Mike Bottom (2008-Present)
Bottom has served on the Michigan coaching staff since the 2008-09 campaign, starting as the men's head coach (2008-12) and adding the women's team in 2013. Over that time, Michigan has compiled an overall record of 100-7-1 (men's) and 61-13 (women's) while winning a combined 12 Big Ten titles (nine men, three women). He led the Wolverine men to an NCAA Championship in the 2012-13 campaign and has eight top-10 finishes at nationals on the men's side and four more on the women's side.
Richard Kimball (1960-2002)
Kimball was a three-time All-America diver at Michigan before beginning his illustrious coaching career. He was a member of the U.S. Olympic diving staff for five Olympics and along the way he coached nine divers to Olympic medals and five divers to NCAA national championships. He was also named the 1984 NCAA Men's and Women's Diving Coach of the Year. Kimball also is enshrined in the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
Matt Mann (1925-54)
In 1925, Mann came to the University of Michigan as head swim coach and thus embarked on a 29-year legacy of national success. Among Mann's startling statistics are: 16 conference titles, 13 national crowns and a dual-meet record of 202-25-3. Under his tenure, Michigan turned out more Olympian swimmers than any other college or University in the United States. He was named the coach of the 1952 United States Olympic swimming team, which captured four of the six swimming gold medals awarded. Ironically, one event the U.S. team did not capture was the 200-meter breaststroke, won by U-M swimmer but Australian competitor John Davies.
Jim Richardson (1985-2012)
Jim Richardson spent 27 seasons at the helm of the Michigan women's swimming program, leading the Wolverines to 14 Big Ten championships, including a record-setting 12 consecutive crowns from 1987-98. The 12 straight conference titles are a Big Ten record among women's sports teams. He also added league championships in 2001 and 2004. At the national level, Richardson's teams placed in the top 10 during 14 of his 27 seasons, including a second-place finish at the 1995 NCAA Championships. Richardson had five individual national champions and one relay win a title during his tenure.
Gus Stager (1954-79; 1981-82)
Stager served as Michigan's swimming coach for 25 years from 1954 to 1979. During Stager's reign, Wolverine teams compiled an impressive 169-39-1 dual-meet record, and the 1957, 1958, 1959 and 1961 squads captured NCAA titles. From 1954 to 1979, his Michigan teams placed third or better every year in the Big Ten Conference. In 1979, Stager received the highest college award in coaching -- the Collegiate Interscholastic Trophy -- for contributions to the sport of swimming. In 1981, he was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
Jon Urbanchek (1982-2004)
Urbanchek guided the Wolverines to the 1995 NCAA championship and 13 Big Ten titles in 22 seasons. The program won 10 straight conference championships from 1986-95. Overall, his teams were 163-34 in dual meets with a 100-4 mark against Big Ten competition. He was the NCAA and American Swimming Coaches Association Coach of the Year in 1995 and was the Big Ten Coach of the Year eight times. During the NCAA championship run in 1995, Michigan won six individual national titles and one relay crown. Urbanchek had 26 swimmers at Michigan represent their countries at the Olympics with 10 individuals combining for 17 medals. He served as an assistant coach for USA Swimming at the 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games and was a special assistant in 2008 and 2012. He also coached the 1994 and 1998 U.S. World Championship teams.
