Rumor Mill: Texas Is Considering “Director of Swimming” Role in Search for New Men’s Coach

By Braden Keith on SwimSwam

While the rumor mill is still swirling every obvious name for who will be the next head coach of the storied men’s swimming & diving program at the University of Texas, there might be a twist in the hunt for Eddie Reese’s replacement with the Longhorns.

Multiple individuals who have familiarity with the search tell SwimSwam that Texas is considering a ‘Director of Swimming’ position for the right candidate. This person would directly lead the men’s team and oversee the entire swimming & diving program, including the women’s team that has finished 2nd at each of the last three NCAA Championship meets.

This structure allows University of Texas administrators flexibility in two key ways: it allows them to go after a coach who wants to continue to coach both genders, and it also allows them to set a higher payscale for the program without either creating a standard for the head coach of just the men’s team or creating a significant pay disparity with women’s team head coach Carol Capitani for a similar position.

The same individuals didn’t rule out that the structure could be in reverse: Capitani could become the Director and oversee both programs while Texas hires a less-experienced head coach to run the men’s program.

While it is not always overtly stated, many collegiate swim programs are structured this way around the country where the nominal head coach focuses on one gender while staying involved with the other alongside a coach hired specifically to lead the other gender.

Texas is unlikely to make an announcement this week with the men’s NCAA Championship meet and Reese’s swan song, and nobody SwimSwam spoke indicated that they knew whether Texas had any agreements in place (formally or in principle), but as the biggest off-season job available and a lot of other dominos ready to fall behind it, the Longhorns are expected to move quickly and lock in a new coach before the recruiting period opens for the Class of 2026.

Texas does have some good young pieces, notably freshman Will Modglin who is projected to be their top scorer at NCAAs, and Nathaniel Germonprez. Still, this summer’s recruiting cycle will be crucial toward rebuilding depth on a roster to a level where Texas can again compete for NCAA titles.

SwimSwam: Rumor Mill: Texas Is Considering “Director of Swimming” Role in Search for New Men’s Coach