SwimSwam Pulse is a recurring feature tracking and analyzing the results of our periodic A3 Performance Polls. You can cast your vote in our newest poll on the SwimSwam homepage, about halfway down the page on the right side.
Our most recent poll asked SwimSwam readers which of the eight Power 4 conference titles up for grabs in the next few weeks will have the most exciting battle:
Question: Which conference title race will be most interesting this season?
RESULTS
- ACC men – 29.4%
- SEC men – 21.8%
- Big Ten women – 16.7%
- ACC women – 11.1%
- Big Ten men – 8.4%
- SEC women – 8.1%
- Big 12 women – 2.7%
- Big 12 men – 1.9%
There was nothing close to a majority in the poll, with readers split on which conference championship title race will be most intriguing over the next few weeks.
Leading the way at 29.4% was the ACC men, where Cal comes in as the defending champions, having won the 2025 title in a dominant conference debut, but the Golden Bears suffered numerous key losses in the offseason, which leaves their postseason prospects a little bit up in the air.
Fellow ACC newcomer Stanford snagged the runner-up spot last season, edging out NC State, which saw its run of three straight titles end with a 3rd-place finish.
This season, based on Swimulator scoring, NC State (1076) leads the conference with Cal (1007) and Stanford (920.5) sitting 2nd and 3rd. Louisville (873.5) isn’t far behind in 4th, and we also can’t forget about Florida State, which has performed well this season in the relays, and Virginia, which has the star freshmen duo of Thomas Heilman and Maximus Williamson, who figure to shake things up in the ACC.
The other title race that picked up more than one-fifth of the votes was the SEC men, which is interesting considering that Texas cruised to victory last season by 149.5 points over Florida, and the Longhorns are by all accounts even stronger this year and the Gators suffered a big blow with the loss of Julian Smith.
The Swimulator has Texas leading the field by nearly 500 points, with Georgia sitting 2nd, just ahead of Florida, and we’re projecting the race for the runner-up spot between the Bulldogs and Gators to be a good one. Perhaps the SEC men garnered mo many votes simply because of the star power and, therefore, record potential at the meet, even if the Longhorns are destined to defend their title.
The leading women’s option came in the Big Ten, where Ohio State comes in as defending champions after reclaiming the title in 2025, the Buckeyes fifth victory in the last six seasons, after being upset by Indiana in 2024.
This season, the frontrunner coming in is probably Michigan, which has had an impressive campaign, led by Florida transfer Bella Sims, and sits atop the Swimulator scoring by more than 200 points (1148.5).
Trailing the Wolverines are USC (929.5), Ohio State (912) and Indiana (910), and Wisconsin isn’t too far off the pace with 867.5 projected points.
Of course, we know the Swimulator doesn’t account for diving, and that’s where the Hoosiers tend to have a big advantage on the rest of these teams. Although they’ve lost their leading diving scorer from 2025, Skyler Liu, Indiana returns three other divers who combined for 144.5 points last season.
Ohio State is also solid on the boards, led by the defending 1-meter champion Lena Hentschel, and USC has Canadian sophomore Kate Miller coming off an impressive freshman campaign, but Michigan may be lacking—though they’ve got veteran Kiarra Milligan and freshman Elonia Lobedecis who could step up and deliver some key points.
If Michigan does manage to claim the Big Ten title, it will be its first victory at the conference meet since 2018.
The ACC women’s meet also drew some support with 11.1% of votes, thanks to the presence of consensus national powers Virginia and Stanford—though it would still be a major upset for the Cardinal to snap the Cavaliers’ six-year streak.
Below, vote in our new A3 Performance Poll, which asks: How many records will go down during the conference meets?
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The A3 Performance Poll is courtesy of A3 Performance, a SwimSwam partner.
I can see 1-2 NCAA records fall during conferences. The only record I can see falling on the women’s side is the 200 Back. On the men’s side I can see the 200 fly and backstrokes potentially falling, and maybe the 100 fly or 100 free (any 1-2 of these really).