The Florida swimming team will take on FSU on Thursday in Tallahassee, but a rivalry meet isn’t the only thing UF has to be excited about.
The three male swimmers who participated in the Rio Olympics this summer (Caeleb Dressel, Mitch D’Arrigo and Jan Switkowski) will return to competition, and the timing couldn’t be better.
“The addition of all three of those guys into our men’s team just changes the complete dynamic of that men’s program,” associate head coach Jeff Poppell said on Monday.
“What they bring not just from a competitive standpoint but from a leadership aspect to the rest of the men on the team is invaluable.”
D’Arrigo, Dressel and Switkowski spent the first portion of the season reacclimating to school and college life.
Their return will be pivotal for the team moving forward as the Gators face Florida State and then travel to Indiana to take on No. 1 Texas and No. 9 Indiana.
And while upcoming matches with top-10 teams will draw plenty of attention, Poppell believes the Gators have all their efforts invested in Florida State this week.
“We take great pride in representing Gator nation, so it’s one of those where any time we’re up against in-state rival Florida State, it adds a little excitement to the competition given who our opponent is,” Poppell said.
If history is any indication, the Gators should be in good shape.
The men haven’t lost to Florida State since 2010, while the women have won every year since 2012.
Both of those losses, however, came in Tallahassee, where the teams will meet this week.
“Florida State, this is their first meet of the season … so it’s one of those where I’m sure they’re gonna be fired up and excited to go in their home pool and the first competition of the season for them,” Poppell said.
“Obviously we want to match and exceed that excitement on our end of things so we can come out on top.”
Contact Drew Kozlin at dkozlin@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @DrewKoz2.
Caeleb Dressel touches the wall at the end of his leg of the 400 meter freestyle relay during Florida’s meet against Auburn on Jan. 23, 2016, in the O’Connell Center.
