- Men's Sports
Coach
Men's/Women's Swimming Head Coach
Dave Johnson
(Miami University, '77)
Office Phone: (937) 652-6817
Email: (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
On March 9, 2010, Urbana University Director of Athletics Doug Young announced Dave Johnson as the new head coach for the Blue Knights' swim teams. Johnson brings a wealth of experience to a young Urbana program that just completed its second season of NCAA Division II competition.
"Dave has been a professional in the sport of swimming in our area for quite a long period of time," explains Young. "His knowledge and experience in recruiting the areas that we value most will be a tremendous asset to our program and the entire University."
The Springfield-native built the swimming program at the Springfield Family YMCA in 1977. Over the next 29 years, he coached the program to national prominence. Over 150 of his swimmers continued their careers at the collegiate level, and a few even reached All-American status.
Johnson also has more than a decade of experience coaching at the high school level. He coached the Springfield North High School squad from 1997-2006. Most recently, he served as the head coach at Springfield High School. In 2002, Johnson was inducted into the Springfield City Schools Hall of Fame for his lifetime of dedication to the community and the sport of swimming.
"Being a head coach at the collegiate level has been a lifetime goal of mine," said Johnson. "The timing wasn't right in past years because I wanted to make sure Springfield High's program was well established before I left."
According to Young, the current members of the Blue Knights' swim team helped with the decision.
"Dave's immediate positive connection with the current members of our team made him the obvious choice as well," said Young.
Prior to coaching, Johnson was an accomplished swimmer at Springfield North High School and later at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Johnson was a four-time All-Ohio selection in high school, and he served as team captain and points leader as a senior at Miami. In three straight seasons, he was the Mid-American Conference champion in the 100-yard breaststroke, as well as a member of the MAC champion 400-yard medley relay team.