Coaches, Jack Bauerle

Jack Bauerle is the consummate team coach. What he has done at the University of Georgia represents the pinnacle of team swimming, which is what the U.S. Olympic Team is all about. He brings a fun approach to the sport, and that will be key to producing Olympic success for our women’s team.”

USA Swimming’s Mark Schubert used those words when he announced that Bauerle had been chosen as the head coach of the United States’ women’s swimming team for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. For Bauerle, who has done it all at the collegiate level, the Olympic appointment became the crowning moment of his career.

But before Bauerle assumes the leadership role for the U.S. women, he will continue to guide the Georgia program – including the 2007-08 season as he pilots the women for the 29th time and the men for the 25th. In that span, Bauerle has met with unparalleled success in and out of the pool, highlighted by four team national championships with the Lady Bulldogs. Under Bauerle’s watch, individual national and Southeastern Conference champions, All-Americans, record-setters, Academic All-Americans and NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship recipients have become the norm. Already the SEC’s winningest coach and the winningest active coach, Bauerle should eclipse the 400-wins mark early in the 2007-08 campaign.

The 2006-07 season was highlighted by Kara Lynn Joyce’s selection as the Honda Award winner for swimming as the nation’s top performer and the SEC Swimmer of the Year. Under Bauerle’s guidance, Joyce ended her career with 18 national titles (nine individuals, nine relays), which is the second-most in NCAA history. Bauerle guided the Lady Bulldogs to a fifth-place finish at the NCAA Championship, their 12th straight top-5 effort. With SEC Swimmer of the Year Sebastien Rouault leading the way, Bauerle’s Bulldogs claimed the 13th spot at the NCAAs, finishing in the top 16 for the 15th straight season.

The tradition established by the founders of the Georgia swimming and diving program have been steadfastly maintained in the Bauerle era. Not only do Bauerle and his coaching staff demand the best of their student-athletes – in the classroom, in the pool and in the community – but their efforts draw individuals who demand the best of themselves.

Bauerle, a native of Glenside, Pa., is married to the former Frances Ruth Fowler. They have two sons, John Randall Jr. and Stuart Magill, who is named after legendary Georgia tennis coach Dan Magill.