Arkansas Head Swimming and Diving Coach Neil Harper announced the hiring of Dale Schultz on Monday as the program’s new Head Diving Coach.
Schultz will enter his third stint with the Razorbacks, previously coaching them from 1989-2000 and then again from 2008-2013. For the past two seasons Schultz served as the head diving coach at the University of Florida, and was named the SEC Women’s Head Diving Coach of the Year for the 2015-16 season.
“I am extremely excited to announce Dale Schultz’s return to the University of Arkansas,” Harper said. “Having been around SEC and NCAA Swimming and Diving for the past 30 years, Dale’s name is synonymous with the University of Arkansas and his teams have enjoyed extremely high levels of success. The current team is very fortunate to now have a coach of Dale’s national and international expertise and experience. He wasn’t the 2016 SEC Diving Coach of the Year at Florida by accident. We are excited about the opportunity our divers will have to reach their fullest potential under Coach Schultz’s leadership. With his addition to our coaching staff, we immediately have the ability to recruit the best divers in the world to the University of Arkansas.”
Schultz, who hails from Akron, New York has over 30 years of collegiate coaching experience including stints in Arkansas, Florida, and Purdue.
“I am extremely excited to be returning to the University of Arkansas to be a part of Coach Harper’s program,” Schultz said. “All of the collegiate programs that Neil has guided have a history that is rich in diving tradition. Fayetteville is home for my family and me. We are looking forward to being back with family and friends and exciting things in the next few years with our swimming and diving program.”
Schultz’s departure from Florida makes two coaches who have left the Gators since the end of the 2015-16 season, as former Associate Head Coach Martyn Wilby announced his resignation after 19 years in late May.
Along with his accomplishment as SEC Women’s Diving Coach of the Year in 2016, Schultz coached Florida diver Kahlia Warner to SEC titles in the 1-meter and 3-meter springboard events, the first time a Gator had done so in 30 years. Schultz was also named SEC Diving Coach of the Year way back in 1993 back in his first stint with Arkansas.
Read the full release on the Arkansas Razorbacks website here.
Great hire for Arkansas! I’ve heard a rumor they are looking at someone currently in the ACC for their swimming assistant position. Could be a little mix up in the ladies SEC race.