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Kauã Pereira, from Sport Club Corinthians Paulista in Brazil, has announced his verbal commitment to study and swim at the University of Tennessee in the class of 2030.
He announced the commitment on Instagram, writing:
I’m really thrilled to announce my verbal commitment to continue my academic and swimming career at the University of Tennessee. I want to thank Coach Matt, Coach Caleb, and Sarah for the amazing opportunity to be a part of this family. I also want to thank my coaches from Corinthians and my parents to gave me all the support that I need. GO VOLS!
Pereira’s been on a strong improvement trajectory, having dropped time each year of his career. His 100 free has seen particular success over the past 12 months, going from 49.74 to 49.02 in long course and 48.94 to 48.37 in short course, while his 50 has improved from 22.76 to 22.44 in LCM and 22.19 to 21.97 in SCM. He also holds best times of 55.55 in the 100 fly LCM and 55.66 SCM, though according to various databases, he’s only swum the event once in each course since setting those marks in 2024.
At the World Junior Championships in August, Pereira finished 10th in the 50 free (22.44), 15th in the 100 free (49.84), and fourth in the 50 fly (24.66). He also helped Brazil finish fourth in the 4×100 free relay, splitting a then-lifetime best of 49.46 on the leadoff leg, and anchored the 4×100 medley relay to ninth with a split of 49.89.
Most recently, at this month’s Brazilian Junior Summer Interclub Championships, he swept the sprint freestyles with times of 22.55 and 49.02. He went on to earn medals in the 50 fly (24.62) and 50 back (26.68), walking away with silver and bronze.
Pereira’s best long course times convert to approximately 19.49 in the 50 free and 42.72 in the 100 free, while his short course bests convert to 19.79 and 43.57, respectively. At the 2025 SEC Championships, it took times of 19.02, 19.36, and 19.53 to make the A, B, and C finals in the 50 free, 41.87, 42.36, and 42.75 in the 100 free, and 45.63, 46.25, and 46.78 in the 100 fly, which suggests he could be an immediate scorer in the sprint freestyles.
It’s important to note that converted times are not 100% accurate and should be viewed as approximations. Still, they help provide some perspective on how Pereira’s performances could translate into the shorter pool.
Top Times:
| Event | LCM Times (converted to SCY) |
SCM Times (converted to SCY)
|
| 50 Freestyle | 22.44 (19.49) | 21.97 (19.79) |
| 100 Freestyle | 49.02 (42.72) | 48.37 (43.57) |
| 100 Butterfly | 55.55 (48.78) | 55.66 (50.14) |
For some additional context, fellow Brazilian sprinter Gui Caribe originally committed to Tennessee with comparable bests of 22.78/49.73 in LCM and 22.81/49.82 in SCM, then went 18.79 and 41.44 in his first year with the team.
The Tennessee men finished third at the 2025 SEC Championships before taking fifth at the NCAA meet. The Vols have seen plenty of success in the sprint freestyle department, but with the losses of NCAA champions Jordan Crooks and Lamar Taylor last season, the sprint group is in the midst of retooling.
This incoming class brings sprint freestyle depth with #15 Miles Blackson-Dunbar (19.3/43.3) and Nigeria’s Abduljabar Adama, who has been 22.21/50.41 in the LCM frees and 23.48/53.48 in the LCM flys. The recruits will overlap one season with Nikoli Blackman (19.05/41.84), while Caribe is graduating in May.
Also in the 2030 recruiting class are #10 Whitaker Steward, #11 Drew Eubanks, and Lithuania’s Mantas Kauspedas. Eubanks is the top breaststroker in the high school class, Kauspedas brings backstroke depth, and Steward specializes in distance freestyle.
Tennessee is only graduating four members of its men’s team after this season, two swimmers and two divers.
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CONGRATULATIONS to Matt Coach Kerdish on Another Fanomenal recruit and on Outstanding Work.
Randy
Congratulations on picking the greatest program and university in the country. The pipeline of great disciplined, studious and talented International swimmers continues. Let the other orange UT recruit the best Americans…just wait until the greatest coaching shows up at SEC and NCAA in 2028 or 2029. The BIG ORANGE MAN VOLS are on an unstoppable run for the roses. GO VOLS!
TN looks like they are going to start regularly competing for National championships in a year or two.
Big time!! Legggooooo!
Brazil to Tenn pipeline running strong