Collins Promoted to Associate Head Coach for Club Relations & Athlete Development

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Thanks to his important affect on this system and Tennessee’s recruiting efforts, Rob Collins has been promoted to Associate Head Coach for Club Relations and Athlete Development for the Tennessee swimming and diving program.

“I’m excited to announce Rob Collins‘ promotion to Associate Head Coach for Club Relations and Athlete Development. This title recognizes the tremendous impact he has had on the growth and success of Tennessee Swimming & Diving. Rob has an exceptional ability to connect with each athlete on our team—to understand who they are today, where they’ve come from, and what they need to continue to grow towards being their best. That perspective has been instrumental in creating an environment where athletes continue to develop throughout their time at Tennessee.”

“Just as importantly, Rob has built outstanding relationships with club coaches across the country through trust, authenticity, and genuine partnership. Those relationships have helped introduce many exceptional student-athletes to Tennessee and have strengthened our program for years to come. I couldn’t be more excited to recognize Rob with this well-deserved promotion, and I look forward to his continued leadership as we build on the success of our program”.

Since becoming a member of Tennessee previous to the 2021-22 season, Collins has helped lead the Vols and Lady Vols to sustained success. Collins helped the Lady Vols seize the 2022 SEC Championship, this system’s second convention title. The packages have gained 4 NCAA championships, 46 SEC Championships medals, and garnered 162 All-American honors. Below is a breakdown of the numbers during the last 5 seasons:

• NCAA Championships
  
  • Total: 4 (Four males’s nationwide championships)

• SEC Championships
  • Total: 46 (30 ladies, 16 males)
  • Individual: 34 (23 ladies, 11 males)
  • Relay: 12 (7 ladies, 5 males)

• SEC Medals
  • Total: 142 (46 Gold, 56 Silver, 40 Bronze)
  • Individual: 99 (34 Gold, 33 Silver, 32 Bronze)
  • Relay: 43 (12 Gold, 23 Silver, 8 Bronze)

• All-Americans
  • Total: 162 (97 First Team, 65 Second Team)
  • Individual: 118 (67 First Team, 51 Second Team)
  • Relay: 44 (30 First Team, 14 Second Team)

 
Collins has performed a key function within the growth of quite a few All-America-caliber swimmers throughout his time at Tennessee. Student-athletes have set quite a few college information and top-10 program instances throughout his tenure. The Vols and Lady Vols have earned 5 mixed prime 5 finishes at NCAAs. The Vols and Lady Vols have every posted consecutive top-five NCAA finishes, making Tennessee one in all solely two packages within the nation to perform the feat on each the lads’s and ladies’s sides.
 
“I am incredibly grateful for the continued opportunity to serve this program”, stated Rob Collins. “Being at Tennessee has been a dream and has been the most incredible experience of my career and for my family. I can’t thank Matt enough and am so grateful to continuing working for one of the most respected coaches in swimming history.  Here’s to many more seasons of learning, serving our student-athletes, celebrating successes together, and making memories with this amazing team. I’m honored to continue being a small part of something so special. Go Vols!”
 
This previous season, Collins coached each the lads’s and ladies’s groups to prime three finishes on the SEC Championships. The Lady Vols gained eight gold medals on the 2026 championships, probably the most for the crew for the reason that 2020 championships. Leading the way in which was Camille Spink, who continued her dominance within the dash free along with her third-straight win within the 50 and 100 Free, whereas capturing the title within the 200 Free for the second consecutive yr. Jillian Crooks and Ella Jansen every took their place atop the rostrum, the primary convention particular person gold medal for the pair of sophomore swimmers.
 
Before becoming a member of this system in 2021, Collins spent 4 years because the CEO and head coach for the extremely regarded Sierra Marlins Swim Team in Folsom, California. The membership has produced a number of Olympians all through the years and through Collins’s tenure, earned recognition via USA Swimming’s National Club Excellence Program. While main the Sierra Marlins, Collins additionally earned the 2020 SwimSwam U.S. Club Coach of the Year honorable point out and was named the 2019 Sierra Nevada Swimming Senior Coach of the Year. He coached the lads’s crew to a championship on the 2019 Winter Junior Nationals West.

In his function as Associate Head Coach for Club Relations, Collins will act as the first liaison between this system and golf equipment across the nation. His intensive expertise in membership swimming will play an integral function in Tennessee’s recruiting efforts.