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Ranking the Classes (M): #6 Arizona

If there was one word to describe Arizona’s class it has to be efficiency. The incoming class of Wildcats isn’t big (in terms of numbers) and doesn’t have any filler, projects or swimmers’ whose future lay a couple of years down the road. How good is this high-quality quintet? It’s so good that Tennessean Michael Sheppard and his four ‘B’ cuts ranks just fifth among his fellow freshmen.

But that doesn’t worry Sheppard. He holds the fastest 200 backstroke among incoming prepster, but isn’t satisfied and chose Arizona because it gave him the opportunity to, “train with great swimmers every day.”

Great swimmers like fellow Southerner and likely lanemate Ellis Miller. Miller’s a similarly-versatile backstroker/flyer who had his pick of schools. Arizona offered the stability his training has lacked. “Arizona has the type of consistency I was looking for. I've had 11 coaches in the last five years, but with Frank, I know I can count on him.”

Mitchell Friedemann knows something about stability coming from Dave Anderson and the Walter Schroeder Aquatic Club. Anderson has worked with some gems and thinks Friedemann could have the most potential to score at the NCAA level. Better than say Garret Weber-Gale? “Mitchell is bigger, they both have really great legs and they are equally determined.” As determined as GWG? Merry Christmas Arizona.

Friedemann will team with Tommy Gutman to form the best 1-2 combination of incoming sprint recruits. Gutman’s potential is tantalizing. The 6’6” Bolles’ beast played center for the prep school, averaging over 13 points per game.

Matt Barber completes the quintet. The two-time National Junior Team member is one of the top 200 flyers in the country and his signing along with Paul Leonhardt (Air Force) and Jake Hartley (Stanford) meant Texas’ top three recruits excited the Lone Star state. Maybe that’s fair play considering the last thing ‘Zona and Stanford got from Texas put both squads in the hospital.

1.29Friedemann, MitchellWI
1.37Barber, Matthew DTX
1.44Gutman, TommyFL
1.61Miller, EllisAR
1.79Sheppard, MichaelTN
#1 Michigan
#2 Auburn
#3 Southern Cal
#4 Stanford
#5 Virginia
#6 Arizona
#7 Tennessee
#8 North Carolina
#9 California
#10 Purdue
#11 Georgia
#12 Texas
#13 Texas A&M
#14 Florida
#15 SMU
#16 Ohio State
#17 Iowa
#18 Indiana
#19 Northwestern
#20 Harvard
#21 Louisville
#22 Maryland
#23 Minnesota
#24 Navy
#25
Alabama25

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