2025 M. NCAA Previews: Liendo Has Dressel’s 100 Butterfly NCAA Record In His Sights

2025 Men’s NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships

• March 26-29, 2025
• Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatics Center, Federal Way, Washington
• Short Course Yards (25 yards)
• SwimSwam Pick’Em Contest
• SwimSwam Preview Index
• Psych Sheet

MEN’S 100 BUTTERFLY – BY THE NUMBERS

• U.S. Open Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
• American Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
• NCAA Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
• 2024 NCAA Champion: Josh Liendo, Florida – 43.07

He’s the defending champion. He’s the fastest active NCAA swimmer. He’s been the most consistent performer in this event over the past two years. Florida junior Josh Liendo is the clear favorite to win the men’s 100 butterfly at the 2025 NCAA Championships.

After dominating last year’s NCAA final, Liendo enters this year’s championships with the fastest time in the country, courtesy of his 43.23 winning time from the SEC Championships. He’s been under 44 seconds in each of his last four major finals and has even broken the barrier in each of those prelim swims. The 2023 SEC Championship meet was the last major competition where Liendo was not somewhere in the 43-second range. 

Liendo’s 100 Fly Swims – Last Five Championship Meets:

Liendo, who represents Canada internationally, currently ranks 2nd on the all-time list, sitting only behind fellow Florida Gator Caeleb Dressel. Liendo is just 0.27 seconds shy of Dressel’s legendary 2018 mark, and there’s a high probability that the record could fall at this year’s NCAA Championships. Given his track record of fast swims in both prelims and finals, it could happen in either round at NCAAs.

Liendo also owns three of the five fastest times in the event’s history. You can view the full list below. 

All-Time Top Performances, 100 Yard Butterfly:

1. Caeleb Dressel – 42.80, 2019 NCAA Championships
2. Josh Liendo – 43.07, 2024 NCAA Championships
3. Youssef Ramadan – 43.15, 2023 NCAA Championships
4. Josh Liendo – 43.23, 2025 SEC Championships
5. Josh Liendo – 43.30, 2024 NCAA Championships

The 2022 & 2023 NCAA Champions

Youssef Ramadan (Photo Credit: Jack Spitser)

Virginia Tech graduate student Youssef Ramadan‘s first NCAA Championship appearance didn’t go quite as planned. He entered the 2021 meet as the top seeded entrant in the 100 fly, but the Virginia Tech first-year was disqualified for a false start in the prelims, and his pre-DQ time wouldn’t have been enough for the ‘A’ final. A year later, he made the ‘A’ final and performed much better, joining the sub-44 club in 43.93, taking 3rd. Then, in 2023, he rose to the top by unleashing the second-fastest swim of all-time (at the time) to beat Liendo at NCAAs (43.15).

Last year, things were a bit different for Ramadan regarding the 100 fly, as he opted not to race the event until championship season. The reasoning behind it was wrist fracture, as we reported in the lead-up to championship season. He slowly ramped things up though, winning the ACC title in 44.06 before placing 4th at NCAAs in 43.95.

The 2023 NCAA Champion hasn’t been at his best so far this season, though. He enters these NCAA Championships with the 14th fastest entry time, 44.67. He placed 5th at the ACC Championships in a time of 44.83, which marks the first time that he’s ever lost the event.

If Ramadan can approach his best time of 43.15, then he will be in the hunt to reclaim his NCAA title. If he only manages to match his season best of 44.67, he might find himself in the ‘B’ final. If he can get near the 44-low range, which would get him within a second of his best time, then he’ll give himself a lane in the championship final.

Andrei Minakov (Photo Credit: Jack Spitser)

Stanford senior Andrei Minakov enters these NCAA Championships with a time of 44.27, the 4th fastest time in the NCAA this year. The 2022 NCAA Champion missed the finals altogether last season, clocking 45.11 to rank 20th after prelims. He’s been consistent this season though, and has improved at every meet he’s contested since November. He opened his campaign with a 45.47 at the ASU, Cal, and Stanford Tri-Meet, then dropped to 44.83 at the Cal dual meet, then 44.31 and 44.27 at the ACC Championships, where he struck gold.

Minakov has broken 44 seconds three times, but they all came in March 2022 when he won the Pac-12 title (43.90) and then delivered back-to-back 43.7s at NCAAs to win the national crown.

While the Russian native has focused on the sprints (50 free, 100 fly, 100 free) for most of his NCAA career, he has dropped the 100 free in favor of the 200 fly for the past two years. He recently won the 200 fly ACC title in 1:39.03, just off his best time of 1:38.63 from last season. The event switch has paid dividends for him in the long course pool, as he came within 0.03 of his nearly five-year-old 100 LCM fly PB last year. The move seems to have slightly hindered his pure speed, as he’s not even entered in the 50 free at NCAAs this year (he’s only swimming the 100 and 200 fly) and his short course 100 fly has marginally regressed.

If he can break 44 again, he gives himself a shot at the top three, but with Liendo approaching the 42-second realm, he will need to make a major jump forward in this event to reclaim the gold medal.

The 200 Guys

Dare Rose (left) & Ilya Kharun (right) (Photo Credit: Jack Spitser)

Ilya Kharun has been breaking new ground in the 100 fly during his sophomore season at Arizona State. During his freshman season, most of his headline-worthy performances came in the 200 fly, where he ultimately won the NCAA title.

Kharun, who represents Canada on the international scene, arrived on campus as one of the top recruits in the country last season. He had prior success at the 2023 World Championships (LCM), where he tied American junior phenom Thomas Heilman for 4th in the LCM version of the 200 fly. Then, this past summer, he made a huge leap forward. He collected a pair of bronze medals at the Paris Olympics, sprinting to bronze in the 100 fly (50.45) and leaping to 3rd in the 200 (1:52.80). Kharun trained under Bob Bowman for most of last year’s season, but is now training fully under the guidance of Herbie Behm, after Bowman took the Head Coach position at Texas.

Kharun is the 3rd seed at 43.85, a time he produced at the Wolfpack Elite Invitational in November. He’s also went 43.90 and 43.95 at a pair of dual meets throughout the season, making it known that his venture into the :43-second area was no fluke. Beyond that, he’s been as fast as 42.80 on a relay swing, indicating that he has even more room to drop from his flat-start time. He will almost certainly need to drop several tenths, possibly more than a full second to challenge for the win, but he’s a heavy favorite for a top three finish.

Georgia’s Luca Urlando is in the same ballpark as Kharun, as he comes in seeded 2nd at 43.62. He dropped that best time at a dual meet versus Tennessee in January, and followed up that performance with a time of 43.99 for 2nd at SECs. The redshirt senior has been on fire this year, posting the two fastest times in 200 fly history: 1:37.17, which broke the NCAA record at the same dual meet in January, and 1:37.18, to win the SEC title.

Urlando holds the NCAA record in the 100 back but opted out of that event for this one, as they occur on the same day. Assuming he finds his way back into the 43-mid range, he’s a very safe bet for a top three finish.

It may seem odd to characterize California graduate student Dare Rose as a 200 specialist, but that’s the case in the short course pool. The 2023 World Championship bronze medalist in the 100 fly has seen more success in the 200 fly in yards, having broken 45 seconds only six times in the 100. However, Rose seems to always peak at the NCAA Championships, where he placed 7th last year (44.46) and 10th the year prior (44.75). Assuming he continues his trend of posting top performances at the big meet, expect him to make some noise with another championship final appearance.

Another competitor who excels in both the 100 and 200 is Michigan junior Tyler Ray. The Wolverine placed 9th in prelims last year with a best time of 44.74 before finishing 16th in the ‘B’ final with a time of 45.24. This year, he’s already seen big improvements: he won the Big Ten title with a new personal best of 44.28 and enters this year’s NCAA meet seeded 5th. If he’s able to swim his best time at this meet, like he did last year, it would likely propel him into the ‘A’ final.

Other Contenders

• Scotty Buff (Florida) — Florida sophomore Scotty Buff enters the meet as the co-5th seed with Ray. The Gator has been exceptional through his sophomore campaign thus far and has especially improved in his freestyle times, though he did clip his best time in the 100 fly at SECs, where he finished 3rd. If he matches his SEC time, he is likely to make the ‘A’ final, but even a tenth or two slower could find him on the outside looking in.
• Connor Foote (Texas A&M) — Texas A&M junior Connor Foote made massive strides last month at the SECs, finishing 4th just behind Buff with a time of 44.34. He shattered his previous best of 44.76 from last year’s SEC meet, which now ranks him 7th on the psych sheets. Foote peaked at the SECs last year before adding a tenth at NCAAs, and with such a deep field, there’s no room for error. He’ll need to be in top form to secure a spot in the ‘A’ final.
• Michel Arkhangelskiy (Florida State) — Florida State fifth-year Michel Arkhangelskiy is one of the few competitors competing in the 100 fly/100 back double this year. The Seminole is seeded higher in the backstroke event, where he won the ACC title with a time of 44.49, but he enters the fly event ranked 8th with his best time of 44.39. It should take around 44.3, give or take a tenth or two, to make the big final, so he’s well within range, though with no margin for error.
• Finn Brooks (Indiana) — Indiana senior Finn Brooks has broken through in a big way in 2025. At last month’s Big Ten Championships, the Hoosier finished 2nd to Ray in this event (44.59), which ranks him 12th on the entry lists. Brooks’ biggest headline came in the 100 breast, though, where he broke the 50-second barrier and enters the NCAAs ranked 2nd in that event. Both of these events take place on the same day at NCAAs, on day three, and he struggled with the double last year, adding significantly in both. However, he has handled the double well at Big Ten meets, so it could just be a matter of taper timing. Indiana has a great shot at winning the overall title at this year’s NCAAs, so it’s likely that the coaching staff has worked hard to make the necessary adjustments. 
• Tomer Frankel (Indiana) — Indiana’s Tomer Frankel joined the sub-44 club at last year’s NCAA Championships, clocking 43.85 for 2nd place overall. He’s only been 44.74 this year, which has him seeded 16th. He will have to approach the 44-low arena to make it into the ‘A’ final, but history shows that he’s highly capable of doing so. He is known to make big drops from his season bests at every NCAA meet, so it would not be shocking to see him make a substantial drop from his entry time.
• Spencer Nicholas (Virginia) — Virginia first-year Spencer Nicholas crushed his lifetime best at the Tennessee Invitational back in November, roaring to a 44.41. He struggled at the ACC Championships last month, though, failing to get under 45 seconds or make it into the ‘A’ final. If he can rediscover his 44.41 form and potentially shave a few more tenths off, he has a high probability of sneaking into the ‘A’ final.

SWIMSWAM’S PICKS

Darkhorse: Luke Miller (North Carolina State) — NC State fifth-year Luke Miller was 3rd a year ago with a best time of 43.90, but has only clocked 44.86 so far this season. He enters the meet ranked 19th, which is outside of scoring position. He finished 6th at last month’s ACC Championships, touching in 44.87, just 0.01 off his season best from November. The 100 fly has only grown deeper since last year, especially with the return of Urlando. He’ll need to be at his best to make waves in the ‘A’ final again, but he’s clearly capable based on last year, and it’s certainly possible that he trained through ACCs in preparation for this meet.