Tennessee Diving Coach Dave Parrington Retires after 35-Year Career
Dave Parrington, the University of Tennessee’s long-time diving coach, announced his retirement on Friday after 35 years at the helm.
Parrington led divers to nine NCAA titles and 47 SEC crowns. He mentored the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America Divers of the Year and 19 SEC Divers of the year. Among his pupils are two medalists at World Championship, three Olympians and eight USA Diving national champions.
“To all the divers over the years, dating back to our first squad who set the tone for what was to come, through all the ups—of which there were many—and downs over the years, I express a monstrous token of gratitude,” Parrington said in a university statement. “On to this final group who, despite some challenges this past season, are awesome and so very much appreciated. I’ll miss being on deck with you but will always cherish the friendships and look forward to watching you flourish with the groundwork we worked so hard day in and day out. Just remember to ‘Let it Fly!’”
Parrington was named the 2013 CSCAA Women’s Diving Coach of the Year, helping the Vols finish third at NCAAs, the highest finish in program history. He was the SEC men’s diving coach of the year on 12 occasions and women’s four times, his 16 honors the most in conference history. He coached Colin Zeng (in 2018 and 2019) and Tori Lamp (in 2013) to national diver of the year awards and Lauryn McCalley to the 2005 NCAA Woman of the Year honor.
Under Parrington, Tennessee was one of only five programs to have at least three national champions on springboard events since 1991, with 30 top-three finishes (20 men’s, 10 women’s). Gabi Chereches (1999, 2000) and Bryden Hattie (2023) both earned the SEC Commissioner’s Trophy as the high scorer at the SEC Championships.
That native of Zimbabwe coached his home country at the 1996 and 2000 Olympics. He served as a judge at U.S. Olympic diving trials in 1988 and 2008, coaching the U.S. delegation to the 1997 World Diving Cup.
Parrington played water polo for Zimbabwe’s national team. He dove for the country on 3-meter and platform at the 1980 Olympics. He spent seven seasons as the head coach of his alma mater, the University of Houston, before arriving in Knoxville.
“For the past 35 years, Dave has helped to shape and grow the Tennessee Diving program into a world leader in the diving community,” Director of Swimming & Diving Matt Kredich said. “He has also challenged, nurtured and mentored hundreds of individual student-athletes to achieve great success on the boards, in the classroom and in their communities. Dave’s passion and expertise have been an inspiration to many, and his impact on the lives of the athletes he’s coached is immeasurable. The Tennessee Swimming and Diving community thanks him for his unwavering commitment, and we celebrate a truly exceptional career. We will miss his presence on deck, but his legacy of a positive and caring brand of competitiveness is now deeply ingrained in the DNA of our program.”
