Virginia head swimming and diving coach Todd DeSorbo announced the hiring of head diving coach Drew Livingston on Tuesday (June 26). Livingston joins the program after serving as the head diving coach at Princeton since 2016.
“We are excited to have Drew join our program,” DeSorbo said. “He is exactly what we are looking for when considering staff additions. He has a great pedigree from his athlete days that is transitioning now to his coaching career. He has a great reputation in the diving community and we look forward to future success on the boards as we move towards our program’s goals of challenging for national titles.”
With the Tigers, Livingston qualified three divers for the 2018 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships, sending the program’s first male divers to the national meet since 1991. Over the span of his two years, the diving program saw a 41 percent increase in points at the Ivy League Championships.
Prior to Princeton, Livingston worked as a graduate assistant at LSU from 2014-16 where he assisted the program’s diving coaches. During that time, the diving team set three of six school records. Livingston’s time at LSU was highlighted by the 2015 season. The Tigers led the 2015 Southeast Conference Championships in diving points and medals. The team advanced a diver to the conference final of each event.
Livingston began his career at his undergraduate alma mater, Texas, in 2013-14 as a volunteer assistant coach. He aided in practice planning and athlete development for both collegiate and post-graduate divers while coaching under NCAA Men’s Diving Coach of the Meet Matt Scoggin. The team captured 10 NCAA All-America honors, which included two individual NCAA titles by Diver of the Meet Michael Hixon.
“I am honored to be joining Todd DeSorbo and the University of Virginia swimming and diving coaching staff,” Livingston said. “Todd’s vision for the future of the program really caught my attention and the enthusiasm from the entire coaching staff is infectious. I am excited to get started in Charlottesville and help this swimming and diving team push forward to new heights.”
Coming from a strong collegiate career, Livingston is a two-time NCAA champion on the one-meter board and a 10-time All-American. He was named the 2012 NCAA Diver of the Year after capturing the national title on the 1-meter board, finishing second on the 3-meter board and fourth on the platform at the national meet. During his career he set an NCAA record in the platform, scoring 542.95 points at the 2009 Big 12 Championships.
In addition to his collegiate career, Livingston qualified for the USA Diving National Team nine times and is a two-time USA Diving National Champion.
Livingston is currently working towards an MBA at LSU. He graduated from Texas in 2012 with a bachelor of science degree in sports management.
Academically, he was named to the Big 12 Conference All-Academic first-team and was a two-year member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, 2010-12.
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