As July 1 has descended upon us, college coaches all across the nation are on their phones, communicating with the high school class of 2015 in hopes they can persuade them to be a part of their programs in the near future.
At collegeswimming.com, we have ranked the top 25 best recruiting classes from this past year by using the borda-count method. Who says you don't use math in everyday life? The way we did it is simple. We took the top 250 recruits on our database and matched them with their school. If you are in the top 50, you are considered a five star recruit. If you are ranked 51-100, you are a four star recruit, etc. We then determined who had the better class by taking the number of guys in each column and multiplying the sum by their star. (for example, if a school had two x five star recruits, then it would be simply two times five.) This was done in hopes of creating an accurate ranking system.
Now, these rankings really don't mean anything, because anything can happen to these athletes over the next four years. It doesn't matter how good you were in high school, you have to prove yourself in college. Athletes can get homesick, get injured, party too much, or may have already maxed out their potential in high school. Ultimately, these rankings don't mean anything. The athletes need to prove it themselves. But for now, enjoy this list, and look out for these guys and gals in the future.
21. Louisville 11
****Carlos Claverie- Venezuela
****Todd Owen- Louisville, Kentucky
***Jonathan Zoucha- Portland, Oregon
Arthur Albiero will be moving to the ACC in the fall without All-Americans Kameron Chastain and Joao de Lucca and three other graduating seniors meaning the Cardinals' first year in the ACC might be a tough one. But the good news is that Albiero managed to get three signees that are capable of scoring in the ACC right away. Albiero really put the nail in the coffin with Carlos Claverie from Venezuela. He is the national record holder in the 200 breaststroke who competed at the 2013 World Championships. He will be training alongside Frenchman Thomas Dahlia and post-grad swimmer and former NCAA champion Carlos Almeida in Louisville. Todd Owen comes from Louisville and is a football player-turned swimmer. He has potential in the sport and, with the guidance of prestigious breaststroke coach Albiero, could only improve from here. Jonathan Zoucha is a middle-distance freestyler from Tualatin Hills Swim Club in Oregon. With the recent success from Joao de Lucca in the 100 and 200 free, Zoucha could improve greatly in Louisville where he will join the depth they have in the free relays. This class would have been ranked higher if it had not been for the recent retirement of incoming freshman Thomas Cooper from Louisville. Cooper was another middle-distance freestyler who would have added big time depth to their relays. With this new group of guys, the Cardinals will be looking to make some noise in their new place in the ACC.
22. Kentucky 11
****Isaac Jones- Allansford, Victoria, Australia
***Joshua York- Midlothian, Virginia
***Steven Richardson- Humble, Texas
*Phillip Emerson- Franklin, Pennsylvania
Isaac Jones is the headliner of this class from Australia. He was on Australia's silver medal winning 800 free relay team from the 2013 Junior World Championships. Jones also swims the 100 free, 400 free, and 400 IM. Kentucky is losing seven scorers from their SEC team. Jones will be looked at as the front runner to help replace those lost points. Joshua York is a backstroker from the state of Virginia. Steven Richardson was a finalist in the 2013 Juniors in the 50 free. He will be looked at to replace Eric Bruck, the school record holder in the 50 free. Phillip Emerson is another sprint freestyler who qualified for Juniors last year. Lars Jorgensen will be saying goodbye to a big class with lots of talent, but he will be welcoming one with just as much talent this fall. The Wildcats have been near the bottom of the powerful Southeastern Conference the past few years, but with a good core group of sprinters moving in, they could move up in the next few years.
23. *Iowa 10
***Robert Hemmingsen- Council Bluffs, Iowa
***Florian Vogel- Bayreuth, Germany
**Christopher Dawson- Centennial, Colorado
*Kristopher Hoce- Palm Harbor, Florida
*Thomas Rathbun- Grand Haven, Michigan
The Hawkeyes are losing four scorers from their Big Ten team, including NCAA qualifier Dustin Rhoads. Robert Hemmingsen is an in-state recruit from Council Bluffs. He is a sprinter who also swims the 100 fly and back. Florian Vogel is a steal for head coach Marc Long. The German import will swim distance freestyle for the Hawkeyes and his converted times will put him in scoring position in the stacked Big Ten Conference. Christopher Dawson is another middle distance freestyler who will add depth for the Hawkeyes. Kristopher Hoce is an IMer from Florida and Thomas Rathbun is an All-American mid-distance freestyler from the state of Michigan. Marc Long has been known for being a tremendous sprint coach, but he has recruited a number of mid-distance freestylers from around the country (and the world). Watch for the Hawkeyes 800 free relay to make some noise in the Big Ten in the coming years if these guys live up to their potential.
24. *Utah 10
***Jack Burton- Ringwood, Hants, United Kingdom
***Niksa Stojkovski- Oslo, Norway
**Peter Kotson- Helena, Montana
*Sean Bloore- Walnut Creek, California
*Keith Schendel- Seattle, Washington
Joe Dykstra's Utah Utes are a group that is quickly rising to the top. Led by a dual meet upset over Arizona earlier in the year, the Utes had 29 new school records set this past season, as well as four All-Americans. Jack Burton is a breaststroker from Great Britain and Niksa Stojkovski is a sprinter from Norway. These international steals could help Utah keep rising to the top in the next few years in their new place in the Pac-12 conference. Peter Kotson, one of the best ever recruits out of the state of Montana, is a distance swimmer that will train alongside Bence Kiraly and Kristian Kron. Sean Bloore is a sprinter that will add to Utah's depth in the freestyle events to backup Pac-12 champ in the 100 free, Nick Soedel. Keith Schendel rounds out the recruits ranked in the top 250 as a breaststroker from King Aquatic Club. Second year coach Joe Dykstra is leading a rapidly improving Utah team that could sneak up on the big teams in the Pac-12 if they are not careful. They are only losing three scorers from their Pac-12 team, and with this recruiting class, could move up in the conference.
25. Ohio State 9
*****Brayden Seal- Frisco, Texas
**Nathan Christian- Lakewood, Ohio
**Thomas Trace- Columbus, Ohio
The Buckeyes are losing one of their most successful swimmers in All-American 100 flyer Tim Phillips. They are gaining, however, Brayden Seal, the third ranked recruit from Texas. Seal is a distance swimmer who qualified for junior nationals in the 400, 800, and 1500 free. He also has range down to the 50 free. Nathan Christian is a sprinter from the Lake Erie Silver Dolphins who is a fast sprinter, finishing second at Ohio High School State in the 50 and 100. Thomas Trace is another in-state recruit from Upper Arlington Swim Club. He won the 50 free at Ohio High School State and was second in the 100 back. Bill Wadley has a large upcoming senior class and with this leadership, will be looking to improve on their third place Big Ten finish.
