Northeastern women’s swimming and diving head coach Roy Coates formally introduced Jeff Rapp, Ph.D., as the Huskies’ new assistant coach on Thursday. Rapp previously served as the assistant coach of both the men’s and women’s swimming and diving programs at Springfield College, from where he also earned his doctorate in exercise physiology, master’s degree in exercise science and strength and conditioning, and FMS certification.
“I am ecstatic with the addition of Jeff to my staff,” said Coates. “His educational background and years of coaching experience at the collegiate level make him uniquely qualified for this position. Having just finished his doctoral degree in exercise physiology, he brings a depth of scientific theory with him that will put our program on the cutting edge of our sport. I cannot wait to work with him and provide the best possible training for our student-athletes.”
Rapp arrives at Northeastern with four years of experience as the fulltime assistant coach at Springfield, where he directed practices for both the men’s and women’s programs under the leadership of head swimming coach, John Taffe, and head diving coach, Peter Avdoulos. Prior to the start of Rapp’s second season with the Pride (2014-15), he was promoted to recruiting coordinator, a role in which he supervised all communication with prospective student-athletes (PSAs) and organized PSA schedules during campus visits. From 2013 to 2017, he helped qualify eight women and two men for the Division III national championships, including one national champion during 2014, and sent one student-athlete to the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials.
Rapp’s tenure at Springfield began in September 2012 as the swimming and diving teams’ volunteer strength coach. Within this role, he implemented the teams’ first structured strength program, focusing on swimming-specific resistance training that translated to faster times in the pool. During the spring of 2013, Rapp expanded his instruction to accommodate the Springfield men’s and women’s lacrosse, women’s soccer, and field hockey programs during biweekly strength practices, stressing proper lifting technique and motivation.
Before transitioning to coach the Pride in a fulltime role, Rapp spent the summer of 2013 as a strength and conditioning intern at UTSA. There, he assisted with the sport-specific offseason lifting regimens for 11 varsity programs, including the Roadrunners’ football, men’s basketball, and women’s basketball teams.
Between competitive seasons at Springfield, Rapp welcomed a variety of opportunities to further his coaching experience and philosophy. During the 2014 offseason, he mentored rising youth swimming athletes at the Navy Swim Camp before serving as a designee and primary speaker at Technique Swim Academy (co-run by Harvard and Northeastern), where he taught fundamentals alongside former Olympians Dara Torres, Erik Vendt, Alex Meyer, and Swim Across America’s Janet Jorgensen, among others.
The following summer, Rapp consulted abroad at China’s second largest Olympic training facility, the Guangzhou Sports Institute, where he assisted in the generation of the strength and conditioning department. As both an international coach and lecturer, he delivered presentations that were focused on training periodization and injury prevention, shared Western coaching methods and practices, and worked one-on-one with strength coach candidates to develop their skill sets.
A decorated student-athlete on the Ithaca men’s swimming team, Rapp collected 19 All-State honors and two Empire 8 titles during his four-year career, capping off his senior year with five all-conference honors, two league titles, and six school records. He graduated from Ithaca in 2012 with his bachelor’s degree as well as his strength and conditioning specialist certification.
Press release courtesy of Northeastern Athletics.
Oh my
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