The Southern Methodist University (SMU) men’s swimming and diving team will send eight athletes to the 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Swimming & Diving Championships, which will take place from March 25 to March 28 at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Georgia.
This participation marks a significant achievement for the program, as it highlights both individual and relay successes throughout the season. Four Mustangs are set to compete in individual events, including a freshman who will swim both the 200-yard and 500-yard freestyle with season-best times of 1:32.13 and 4:17.28 respectively. He is noted as being the first SMU freshman since Robin Andreasson in 2009 to qualify for NCAAs. A junior will participate in two backstroke events, while on the diving side, a sophomore and a freshman diver have qualified; one of them is an All-American who recently won both one-meter and three-meter events at the NCAA Zone D Diving Championships.
Relay teams have also shown strong performances this year. The Mustangs broke school records in both the 400- and 800-yard freestyle relays during recent competitions. The squad achieved a program-best time of 2:48.72 in the 400 free relay at their home invitational last November, while another record was set during this year’s ACC Championships with a time of 6:11.47 in the longer relay event.
At their second-ever appearance at ACC Swimming & Diving Championships earlier this season, SMU brought home two medals—including its first-ever individual ACC Championship—and four A finals appearances. Notably, one diver won gold on one-meter springboard and bronze on three-meter springboard.
The history of Mustang success extends beyond current achievements; SMU has produced twenty-nine NCAA champions over its history, with Lars Frolander being their most recent champion after winning two titles in consecutive years by 1998.
Looking ahead to Atlanta, family ties run deep for some team members—one swimmer’s father previously claimed Olympic gold at this same venue when it hosted swimming events during the Atlanta Olympics.
