Goal setting is one of the most important processes in swimming, or any sport. When swimmers think of goals, they usually think of where they want to be at the end of the season. Coaches must also consider what they want their programs to achieve, and more importantly, must lay out the plan to get the team there. The process of setting goals can be straight-forward and fun, or it can be complicated and daunting, depending on one’s circumstances.
For the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), their team goals after the conclusion of the 2009-2010 season were at once simple and very complicated: perform better as a team, or be eliminated. It was at that time that head coach Michael Lawson and former assistant coach Rob Franc created a six-year plan to turn the program around. Now that those six years have come to an end and the NJIT swim team is performing at an all-time high, we are able to look back and see the challenges faced by the team, and the steps they took to overcome them.
Despite a detailed and diligent application of the six-year plan laid out by Lawson and Franc, NJIT was winless for both the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 seasons, going 0-24 in competition. Now two years into the six-year plan, Lawson had not only lost his assistant coach, but was also captaining a team of only 8 men and 3 women, all of whom competed on the Men’s team, due to a rule in the NCAA that states that women may compete in a men’s sport if the school does not also offer a team for female athletes. The 11 swimmers that Lawson had were exactly enough to meet the minimum team size allowed by NCAA rule. Of the women, Lawson says that they “worked harder than their male counterparts because they truly wanted to be on the team more than anyone else.”
Despite these circumstances NJIT reinstated recruiting and kept their spirits high, believing that the program would not only improve but one day become a success by anyone’s standards. Practices were run between 9:00 pm and 11:00 pm, in order to accommodate Lawson and his three volunteer assistant coaches’ schedules. NJIT broke some school records during the 2011-2012 season and moved up in the standings in the Metropolitan Conference meet, though they were unable to secure any ECAC cuts. However, all of this was about to change.
With a boon of scholarship money to assist in rebuilding the program, NJIT had a breakout year during the 2012-2013 season. 19 out of 23 school records fell that season, and the team qualified to compete in the ECAC meet at the end of the season. At the Metropolitan Conference meet, NJIT placed several swimmers in the top 8 in their events, and two athletes place in the top 10 at ECAC’s, whereas the year prior the team was not even invited to ECAC’s. Overall NJIT finished the 2012-2013 season with a 5-6 record and a 9th place finish at the Metropolitan Conference meet. Midway through the season the team had the reprieve of a Miami training trip, reinstated one year ahead of schedule, which no doubt boosted their spirits and contributed to some of the success of the season. Though despite all that NJIT did accomplish, the women’s team was not reinstated.
The following year NJIT joined the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Conference (CCSA), a step in the six-year plan that was key to becoming affiliated with more D1 teams. Interestingly, while NJIT’s swimming program joined the CCSA, the rest of the school’s sports remained independent. Another success of the 2013-2014 season was the inaugural diving program. One caveat was that NJIT did not have diving boards, so all diving practices had to take place at other nearby universities. As funding increased so did team resources and results. More athletes made top 8 in the CCSA Conference Championships, and the team travelled to the University of Georgia and the University of Tennessee for competitions, forgoing ECAC’s. During this season NJIT placed 5th at CCSA’s, and coach Lawson and his three assistants were instated as part-time university employees, though the second assistant diving coach remained volunteer.
During the 2014-2015 season NJIT posted a winning record, and just missed an NCAA “B” from Brian Capozzola in the 50 free when he swam 20.28. Capozzola placed second in the 50 free at the CCSA Championships, and the team placed third overall in the ECAC Winter Championships. The team broke more than half of its school records in this season, and placed 4th at the CCSA Championship meet.
By the 2015-2016 season NJIT had added more D1 teams to their competition line-up, and continued to break records and put more swimmers in the top 8 at CCSA’s. Recruiting also witnessed a marked diversification and broadening of scope, reaching out to athletes in Canada, Brazil, and across the US, from New York and Pennsylvania to Washington, California, and Texas. Funding for a $102 million athletic complex was also initiated. Once complete, the facility will feature an 8-lane 25-yard pool, complete with diving equipment.
In addition to bringing on board successful athletes, Lawson and his assistants also sought out academically adept students that had a history of academic success. 82% of NJIT’s swimming and diving team were majoring in a STEM subject during the 2015-2016 season.
While it is easy to get caught up in the successes of the program, Lawson still refers back to the six-year plan that he and Franc laid out in the spring of 2010. “When Rob and I developed [the plan] 6 years ago, I never truly thought we would be able to accomplish all of the goals we laid out for ourselves. Some of them back then seemed like pipe dreams!” Lawson attributes the achievements of the program to the team and alumni as well, since there would be no team without the athletes and athletes-turned-fans that support the current swimmers and divers, and know how difficult getting to the next milestone can be.
Like all swimmers and coaches, Lawson has updated and revised parts of his plan, as goal-setting is never static, but a fluid and adaptable process. As the NJIT team accomplished more of its goals, Lawson has created more goals that are “lofty,” in his words, though appropriate for NJIT as the program continues to move up in the Mid-Major standings and become a leader in the growing CCSA conference.
Whatever your affiliation, it is hard not to root for a program like NJIT, and we look forward to seeing what they will accomplish in the upcoming season.
