19.7/43.3 Sprinter Jack Armstrong Transfers from Auburn to Grand Canyon

Sprinter Jack Armstrong has announced his transfer to Grand Canyon University this coming fall. Armstrong, a Texas native who trains with the Houston Bridge Bats, swam one season with Auburn University in the SEC (2019-20).

Proud to announce I will be swimming at Grand Canyon University in the fall of 2021. Go Lopes #lopesup

TOP TIMES (SCY)

  • 50 free – 19.71
  • 100 free – 43.35
  • 200 free – 1:40.93
  • 100 breast – 55.08
  • 100 fly – 48.31

Armstrong competed at the 2020 SEC Championships, which would be his last meet with Auburn. At that meet, his first collegiate conference champs, he scored a point in the 50 free at 24th place, hitting a lifetime best 19.71 in prelims. He also raced the 100 free and 100 fly at the meet, and he split 19.34 on their 200 free relay in a time trial after their relay was DQ’d in the official event final.

While at Auburn, Armstrong dropped .08 in the 50 free and .70 in the 100 fly. He’s been training with the Houston Bridge Bats during this gap year.

Most recently, Armstrong raced at the virtual Winter Championships, going lifetime bests in the 100 breast (55.08) and 100 fly (48.31) as well as breaking 20 again in the 50 free (19.87). His 100 breast improvements have been remarkable; he’d never been under a minute until November 2020, when he went 57.08. He then dropped to 56.13 at the Winter Champs prelims and wound up with a 55.08 in finals.

Armstrong is a massive snag for the Antelopes, who finished third at the 2020 Western Athletic Conference Championships. GCU is led by junior Mazen Shoukry in the sprint free events, who was 19.71/43.25 in the 50/100 last season.

With his lifetime bests, Armstrong would’ve tied Shoukry for the 2020 WAC title in the 50 free, taken second behind Shoukry in the 100 free, and finished top 10 in both the 100 fly and 100 breast.

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Texas A&M Swim Fan
3 years ago

Glad to see that Jack has found his place to study & swim. He was in the transfer portal a while back & I thought I had just missed where he had gone. Congrats to him👍

BAMA BACKER
3 years ago

Gary was a OK assistant coach with tons of talent in the pool. He is still 20 years of experience away from being a good D1 coach.

Human Ambition
Reply to  BAMA BACKER
3 years ago

IF program leading experience is a must, neighbor In Tuscaloosa is on thin ice.

Btw, Gary is sincere, dedicated and a hard worker. Not easy to match the results from the Marsh era. I’d say making a top ten team has gotten exponentially harder since the 90s.

swimmer
Reply to  Human Ambition
3 years ago

It is exponentially harder but Gary has brought the team much further away from being a top 10 team than it was with previous coaches

Swimnerd
Reply to  swimmer
3 years ago

He came in with 7 new freshman he didn’t recruit (boys
and girls). Then had to bring in over 20 freshman way behind the recruiting timeline, and once again for this years class, give him time. For the most part it is the pre-Gary group that is unhappy.

Fan
Reply to  Swimnerd
3 years ago

That freshman class that he inherited was great with atleast one top 20 recruit. And every new college coach inherits a team they did not recruit but it seems like auburn has many internal issues and has dropped in the rankings

Guerra
3 years ago

Congrats to Grand Canyon University! I never thought I’d say it, but if you want to swim collegiately in Arizona, they are maybe the last good option left.

LOLGuerra
Reply to  Guerra
3 years ago

Cmon Guerra. We all know you have a personal vendetta against Bowman and would rather everyone head to IU. But both Arizona and ASU are better options in the state. GCU is a for profit university that’s degree is meaningless compared to the brands of ASU and Arizona in the state. Not to mention they would both blow GCU out of the water in a meet.

swimapologist
Reply to  LOLGuerra
3 years ago

I can only think of one industry where Arizona State has a strong national brand.

Can anybody guess which one?

Coach Ella
Reply to  swimapologist
3 years ago

Idk, they have a good computer science program?

PVSFree
Reply to  swimapologist
3 years ago

They have a great journalism program

swim fan 42069
3 years ago

1:40 in the 2free but goes 43.3?

Dylan
Reply to  swim fan 42069
3 years ago

You ever met a true sprinter?

Nah
Reply to  Dylan
3 years ago

Not in the way you are referring. I’ve met athletes who never learned how to breathe properly or never developed/trained their race strategies. But never an athlete who goes a 43.3 and physically couldnt break 1:40. Dressel is the fastest swimmer ever. Does he classify as a true sprinter? I bet he could break ncaa record in 200 free.

VSkel
Reply to  Nah
3 years ago

1:40 in the 200 free cuz he likes 50s and 100s. He doesn’t like the 200 so he hasn’t raced it in years. When you go a 43.3 you don’t have to swim the 200 if you don’t want to 🤣

Swimmer
3 years ago

Is bridge bats becoming a feeder to GCU or something? I’ve noticed most of their commitments have been to gcu over the past couple of years.

Erik
Reply to  Swimmer
3 years ago

Continuity in training philosophy between the two programs.

Swimmer
Reply to  Erik
3 years ago

and what is that training philosophy? I’m just curious.

Erik
Reply to  Swimmer
3 years ago

Minimizing extraneous volume.. And if I remember correctly, both are students of the Milt Nelms school of thought.

swimfin5
3 years ago

Gary seems to suck

swimdaag
Reply to  swimfin5
3 years ago

i dont think this was a coaching issue

Dirk Digler
Reply to  swimfin5
3 years ago

You say this based off of what? Swimswam articles? Look at the root problems Gary is working to resolve such as rebuilding the program after the previous administration used it to build their own personal brands, helping young adults grow TOGETHER in our current national political climate, dealing with swim parents that now feel they should have more of a say (for some reason), and this website that has given yet another forum to people vocalize whatever opinion they have without any basis and without regard to who reads it.

Gary still does not have a team that he fully recruited and there certainly have been some very great achievements during his time with the team. There may have… Read more »

Johnny Rocket
Reply to  Dirk Digler
3 years ago

Auburn head coaches: blaming swimswam for their failures since…sorry I forgot when did Brett Hawke become head coach?

Does this mean that if Gary Taylor doesn’t have success in the 2022-2023 season, when it’s a team he fully recruited, he’ll immediately resign?

Why do college coaches hate accountability so much?

Swimnerd
Reply to  Johnny Rocket
3 years ago

Anyone ask the opinions of the swimmers there that are happy? They are well above 75%, my heart breaks for them this year.

Sarcastic
Reply to  Dirk Digler
3 years ago

There’s literally 5 people on the team that even swam for “the other administration”, so maybe we need to stop blaming coaches that haven’t been there in three years. Gary got rid of everyone when he came in, including the secretary that was a mother figure to that team for a decade. This is his team, not Brett’s. It’s ok to hold a staff accountable if people seem to be jumping ship. And also – those achievements were set by swimmers recruited by the past staff. Give credit where credit is due.

Last edited 3 years ago by Sarcastic
BAMA BACKER
Reply to  swimfin5
3 years ago

I’ll say it again, when Johnny (Hargis) comes marching home, the Eagle will fly.

Tswim
Reply to  BAMA BACKER
3 years ago

He continues to underwhelm at Pitt.

Monday Morning Grind
Reply to  BAMA BACKER
3 years ago

Bahahaha he’s more interested in resting and suiting his swimmers to boost their dual meet record than he is in having them improve over the course of a season

PVSFree
Reply to  BAMA BACKER
3 years ago

The stories I’ve heard about Hargis’s coaching style don’t seem like he’s the one to fix the problems at Auburn

Guerra
Reply to  swimfin5
3 years ago

Dear Auburn University, I don’t care how you do it and I don’t care how much it costs… just make it happen. Please bring David Marsh back to the Plains as the Head Coach. Let him put the band back together again and make Auburn GREAT again!

JCO
3 years ago

Great for GCU!

DCSwim
3 years ago

there is no war in ba sing se

leisurely1:29
Reply to  DCSwim
3 years ago

What are you talking about?? Where do you think all the transfers come from? YOU CAN’T HIDE IT!

mcmflyguy
Reply to  DCSwim
3 years ago

the fact that my swimming world has now crossed with this quote has made my day

Last edited 3 years ago by mcmflyguy

About Karl Ortegon

Karl Ortegon

Karl Ortegon studied sociology at Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT, graduating in May of 2018. He began swimming on a club team in first grade and swam four years for Wesleyan.

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