Seven-time NCAA Division III Coach of the Year George Kennedy will step out of retirement and join Loyola University Maryland head coach Brian Loeffler on the Greyhounds’ pool deck as an assistant coach, Loeffler announced today.
Kennedy retired as the head coach at nearby Johns Hopkins after the 2015-2016 season after building and maintaining one of the most dominant Division III programs on the Homewood campus.
“It is rare that you get the opportunity to add someone so talented and experienced to the coaching staff,” Loeffler said. “George has been a friend and mentor to me for several years, and I cannot wait to share the pool deck with him this fall.”
At the end of his final year, he was honored with the Speedo College Swimming Coaches Association of American (CSCAA) Lifetime Achievement Award after winning 373 dual meets and 24 conference titles and coaching 31 national champions and nearly 1,500 All-Americans.
“Coaching collegiate student-athletes is in my blood, and I want to thank Brian and the Loyola administration for this wonderful opportunity,” said Kennedy. “I cannot wait to begin the season on September 5.”
Kennedy’s teams finished in the top-10 an impressive 48 times at the NCAA Championships, including 21 top-five finishes, but the excellence was not limited to the water. During his tenure at Johns Hopkins, Kennedy and the Blue Jays have recorded numerous awards for academic excellence from the CSCAA, 12 CoSIDA Academic All-America honors, eight NCAA Postgraduate Scholars, an NCAA Elite 89 Award winner and a Rhodes Scholarship.
He was inducted to the Johns Hopkins Athletics Hall of Fame, and in 2014, Fortune named Kennedy one of the “World’s 50 Greatest Leaders.”
A 1977 graduate of the University of North Carolina, Kennedy was a four-year letter winner for the Tar Heels and an NCAA Division I qualifier in the 100-yard backstroke. After graduation, Kennedy remained at UNC to earn his master’s degree in physical education and serve as an assistant on the Tar Heels’ coaching staff.
In 1980-81 he became head coach of the men’s and women’s swimming teams at Gettysburg College, where he compiled an impressive 77-31-2 dual meet record in five seasons.
Kennedy currently resides in Towson, Maryland, with his wife, Helen. They have two daughters, Catherine, a graduate of the University of Mary Washington, and Sarah, a graduate of North Carolina.
Press release courtesy of Loyola University Maryland Swimming & Diving
Congrats on the great addition to the staff
Oh my
Let me know if you need help at the meets!
Good catch!