2026 Men’s NCAA Championships: Navy Had The Most Elite-Level Takeovers This Year

2026 NCAA DIVISION I MEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Dates: Wednesday, March 25–Saturday, March 28
• Location: McAuley Aquatic Center, Atlanta, GA
• Defending Champions: Texas (1x)
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  • Prelims: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4
  • Finals: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4

Arizona State won a historic four out of five relays this year, the most since Texas in 2017. The Sun Devils claimed NCAA titles in the 200 medley, 200 free, 400 medley and 400 free, setting an NCAA record in the 200 free and swimming the #2 time in history in the 200 medley and 400 free.

However, there was one area on the relays where they were not the top team this year – the takeovers. That honor falls to an unexpected team, as Navy had three of their four NCAA relays this year each have a combined takeover time of 0.22 seconds or better, more than any other team. They also had the fastest combined takeover time of any individual relay, coming in at 0.12 seconds on the 400 free relay where they placed 29th.

That 0.22 seconds works out at an average of 0.073 seconds per takeover, and their top performer was individual qualifier Ben Denman-Grimm. The sprint freestyler swam three flying splits at the meet, with an average of 0.043 seconds for his takeovers – he was -0.01 on the 400 free, 0.03 on the 400 medley, and 0.11 on the 200 medley.

Their top performance this year, that 0.12 seconds result on the 400 free relay, is the fifth-fastest of any team at NCAAs this decade.

There have been 61 teams with a combined takeover time of 0.30 seconds or better at NCAAs in the 2020s, working out at an average of a tenth of a second per swimmer. The fastest of all was Alabama’s 200 medley team in 2023, which had a combined reaction time of just 0.01 seconds. Virginia’s 2021 200 medley team was also under 0.10 seconds with a combined 0.08 seconds.

*Relay exchanges down to -0.03 are allowed, as the timing equipment has a tolerance of 0.03 seconds.

Relay Teams With A Combined Takeover Time Of 0.30 Seconds Or Better, 2021-2026 NCAAS

A total of 8.5% of all relay teams in the 2020s have been 0.30 seconds or better on their takeovers. The majority of teams fall between 0.40 and 0.70 seconds, peaking at around 0.50 seconds.

The 400 medley relay has seen the most success for teams pushing the takeovers, with 22 relay teams dipping under the 0.30 mark. The two shorter relays, the 200 free and 200 medley, are next up, while the 800 free relay is yet to see a team do so.

Relays With A Combined Takeover Time <= 0.30 seconds (By Relay)

This year saw far more teams than last year under 0.30 seconds. Just four were in 2025 – Louisville and Auburn in the 400 free relay, and Georgia Tech in both the 200 free relay and 400 free relay.

Relays With A Combined Takeover Time <= 0.30 seconds (By Year)

Notre Dame, Louisville, and Auburn lead the way this decade with five relays each with takeovers under 0.30 seconds, with Penn State close behind with three. Only two title contending teams have done so however – Cal on the 400 medley in 2024, and Indiana on the 500 medley this year.