Rice Swimming is ranked #22 by College Swimming and is the top mid-major.

http://www.collegeswimming.com/news/2013...formances/

http://www.collegeswimming.com/news/2013...mid-major/

(11-26-2013 03:36 PM)dragon2owl Wrote:  Rice Swimming is ranked #22 by College Swimming and is the top mid-major.

http://www.collegeswimming.com/news/2013...formances/

http://www.collegeswimming.com/news/2013...mid-major/

Seth has done a great job with the team, especially given the constraints; no men's team (training partners and additional coaches allowed for coed teams.) Need to take this to the next level by reinstating the men's team!

I have to comment on this. First, the ranking is not a "poll" in the normal sense...the ranking is based on actual performance times and converted to a point system. Being ranked ahead of such teams as USC, Tennessee, Arizona State, and Cal-Berkeley (with Missy Franklin) is an amazing feat. I don't think the team made any special preparations for this meet so the fact that school records were set and NCAA qualifying times were satisfied with just normal training is an indication of the ability of the athletes involved.

If you look at the meet results, there were races where Rice had numerous swimmers in the top 8. In the final relay, Rice teams finished first and second ahead to the top teams from UH, Tulane, etc. When you add the fact that the entire swimming team is composed of really good students it is really an amazing accomplishment.

(11-27-2013 03:34 PM)Houston Owl Wrote:  I have to comment on this. First, the ranking is not a "poll" in the normal sense...the ranking is based on actual performance times and converted to a point system. Being ranked ahead of such teams as USC, Tennessee, Arizona State, and Cal-Berkeley (with Missy Franklin) is an amazing feat. I don't think the team made any special preparations for this meet so the fact that school records were set and NCAA qualifying times were satisfied with just normal training is an indication of the ability of the athletes involved.

If you look at the meet results, there were races where Rice had numerous swimmers in the top 8. In the final relay, Rice teams finished first and second ahead to the top teams from UH, Tulane, etc. When you add the fact that the entire swimming team is composed of really good students it is really an amazing accomplishment.

Bob can you go over the possibility of adding divers to the team. Is the issue construction of a diving tank or the cost of the additional scholarships? If it is the latter it sounds like the sort of thing that JK could try and solve with a dedicated fundraising.

(11-27-2013 04:19 PM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  Bob can you go over the possibility of adding divers to the team. Is the issue construction of a diving tank or the cost of the additional scholarships? If it is the latter it sounds like the sort of thing that JK could try and solve with a dedicated fundraising.

There is a limit of 9.9 scholarships for swimming and diving. I would presume that we are already at that limit and adding diving would split up the scholarships a bit more than they are already split up. Pure speculation, but that seems reasonable to me.

(11-27-2013 04:19 PM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  

(11-27-2013 03:34 PM)Houston Owl Wrote:  I have to comment on this. First, the ranking is not a "poll" in the normal sense...the ranking is based on actual performance times and converted to a point system. Being ranked ahead of such teams as USC, Tennessee, Arizona State, and Cal-Berkeley (with Missy Franklin) is an amazing feat. I don't think the team made any special preparations for this meet so the fact that school records were set and NCAA qualifying times were satisfied with just normal training is an indication of the ability of the athletes involved.

If you look at the meet results, there were races where Rice had numerous swimmers in the top 8. In the final relay, Rice teams finished first and second ahead to the top teams from UH, Tulane, etc. When you add the fact that the entire swimming team is composed of really good students it is really an amazing accomplishment.

Bob can you go over the possibility of adding divers to the team. Is the issue construction of a diving tank or the cost of the additional scholarships? If it is the latter it sounds like the sort of thing that JK could try and solve with a dedicated fundraising.

The new pool was built with 1 meter and 3 meter boards.

(11-27-2013 05:20 PM)RiceDoc Wrote:  

(11-27-2013 04:19 PM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  Bob can you go over the possibility of adding divers to the team. Is the issue construction of a diving tank or the cost of the additional scholarships? If it is the latter it sounds like the sort of thing that JK could try and solve with a dedicated fundraising.

There is a limit of 9.9 scholarships for swimming and diving. I would presume that we are already at that limit and adding diving would split up the scholarships a bit more than they are already split up. Pure speculation, but that seems reasonable to me.

Rice Doc, like every other sport save football scholarship limits are skewed by gender. 9.9 is the scholarship limit for men's D1 swimming and diving (don't worry, we haven't handed out one of these since 1998.). Women get 14; you are correct any diving scholarships count against the 14. The advantage for full teams at the NCAA championships is that only 18 competitors per team are allowed but student athletes who only compete in diving count as 1/2 a competitor so a team could enter 18 swimmers, 17 swimmers and 2 divers or 16 swimmers and 4 divers etc, assuming they meet the qualification standards.

Need funds to add a diving coach. I would imagine we can start with some walk ons to avoid cutting into scholarship swimmers. Can a coach be "part time" or" seasonal"?

There probably would be a slight reduction in available swimming scholarships but diving should really be possibility if we want to continue to win conference championships,etc. A volunteer coach (such as Laura Wilkinson) who was provided a facility to conduct lessons and establish a diving club might be available with a reasonable salary (given the opportunities to use the Rice name and establish an income from lessons, etc). It certainly is worth continuing the discussion...and I agree that it may be something JK should consider.

Last year both UH and SMU scored substantial points in diving at the C-USA meet but we were able to overcome the scoring deficit. I'm not sure that can continue.

(11-27-2013 09:22 PM)Houston Owl Wrote:  There probably would be a slight reduction in available swimming scholarships but diving should really be possibility if we want to continue to win conference championships,etc. A volunteer coach (such as Laura Wilkinson) who was provided a facility to conduct lessons and establish a diving club might be available with a reasonable salary (given the opportunities to use the Rice name and establish an income from lessons, etc). It certainly is worth continuing the discussion...and I agree that it may be something JK should consider.

Last year both UH and SMU scored substantial points in diving at the C-USA meet but we were able to overcome the scoring deficit. I'm not sure that can continue.

It would be helpful to add the men's team back, as most top 25 programs have both men's and women's teams and share coaching staff, especially diving. The guys, even if not as successful as the women provide additional training partners (similar to the use of men's practice players by women's basketball teams.) FINA added coed relays in the last world championships and if the NCAA follows suit our successful women's team will be at even more of a disadvantage by not being able compete in these new events!

I have a little expertise on this with two girls who compete in year round swimming (well just one now with the older one taking a break in her first year of middle school).

It's amazing to me to see how many year round swimmers there are in the Houston area. Our club hosted a meet two weeks ago that had 700 swimmers (and that was just one of three or four meets in the Houston area that weekend). We just had two senior swimmers sign scholarships - a female with Youngstown State and a male with Cincinnati.

Swimming is massive in Texas because it's something that allows the kids to do it year round, and probably stay relatively refreshed doing it because you're practicing in the water and meets are generally indoors. There was a recent report that talked about how kids these days are slower than their parents in a mile run. I promise you that isn't the case with swimming. We have 10 year olds on our team who can do a 50 yard free in 30 seconds (not mine lol).

I'm very excited our women's swim team is so successful and a diving team would make it even more so. Our facility is top notch and I definitely think we can be successful in the future (if for no other reason than the fact that our swim coaches can make a ton of extra money with their 'side jobs' in running the Rice Swim youth teams).

I'd like to see a men's team but I'm not sure that will happen because of Title IX. I'd also like to see a men's soccer team and I know of a neighbor who would be an incredible coach for Rice if we had a team.

(11-27-2013 05:20 PM)RiceDoc Wrote:  

(11-27-2013 04:19 PM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  Bob can you go over the possibility of adding divers to the team. Is the issue construction of a diving tank or the cost of the additional scholarships? If it is the latter it sounds like the sort of thing that JK could try and solve with a dedicated fundraising.

There is a limit of 9.9 scholarships for swimming and diving. I would presume that we are already at that limit and adding diving would split up the scholarships a bit more than they are already split up. Pure speculation, but that seems reasonable to me.

Extremely sad that my last contact with Kent (Rice Doc) was the email post above and my subsequent response. Kent was a championship swimmer in his youth as well as an outstanding football player. I often wonder what his presence in the pool would have done to our opposition at Rice. Kent was an excellent swimmer who even at his football playing weight would have given the SWC a run for their money. Kent and I had many spirited debates on the future of Rice athletics and his efforts helped save Football and D1 athletics at Rice after the 2004 McKinsey report.

(11-28-2013 09:34 AM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote:  Swimming is massive in Texas because it's something that allows the kids to do it year round, and probably stay relatively refreshed doing it because you're practicing in the water and meets are generally indoors.

It somewhat surprises me that competition pools in Texas (even in the southern half of Texas) are mostly indoors, whereas in California (even in the northern part of California) they seem to be almost always outdoors. Apparently Californians will train and compete outdoors in temperatures that seem awfully cold to me.