Breaststroker Matthew Dunphy from the Winchester Swim Team has verbally committed to the Tennessee Volunteers.
Dunphy admits that he was a potential pickup for the Volunteers. “My times aren’t all that impressive, I think it was more of my potential,” Dunphy said of his connection with Tennessee. “This is my third year swimming and I haven’t ever swum year round yet.”
Specifically, Dunphy, a lifelong football player, wasn’t even swimming summer league until a few years ago. He says he “knew (the strokes) a little from swimming for a couple of months in 2nd grade,” but that he was basically starting from scratch.
That framing makes his breaststroke times that-much more impressive. In yards, he’s been 58.16/2:06.60 in the 100 and 2o0 breaststrokes plus 1:54.93 in the 200 IM. In long course he’s even better, with long course bests of 1:06.77 and 2:24.02.
Not surprisingly, he’s still dropping significant time, including four seconds as a junior in the 100 yard breaststroke and thirteen seconds as a junior in the 200 yard breaststroke.
At 6’6″ tall, Dunphy has great size and is a great athlete, and could be a Breeja-Larson-like story for Tennessee. Larson also is a breaststroker, also is very tall, and was also a relative late-comer to swimming.
One of the best kids I have ever had the pleasure of coaching. UT got a good one here.
Tennessee likes tall people.
Great guy. Competed against him in high school and he’s clearly put in a lot of work since he went 1:04 in the 100 just a couple years ago. Congratulations Matthew.