Dan Lloyd to Take Reins of Illinois Wesleyan Swim & Dive Programs

Courtesy: IWU Sports

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Five-time College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Coach of the Year Dan Lloyd has been named the director of the Illinois Wesleyan University men’s and women’s swimming and diving programs, announced by Director of Athletics Mike Wagner on Tuesday, April 15. Lloyd comes to IWU after an 11-year run as head coach at Augustana College. He will officially begin his role May 1.

“I am thrilled to welcome Dan home to Bloomington and excited to have him joining our Titan family,” Wagner said. “Throughout the search process, it became apparent that he was the right person to lead our program. He brings a competitive championship passion, is a proven program-builder, and values the Division III student-athlete experience. I look forward to seeing our programs thrive under his leadership.”

“Thank you to President Zenger and Athletic Director Mike Wagner for this opportunity,” Lloyd said. “I am honored to lead and build the program as we create a culture that aligns with the vision that President Zenger has laid out for the University, where the academic experience is transformational for students as they pursue goals that will be impactful for a lifetime.”

“I am a coach, but first and most importantly, I am a father,” Lloyd added. “It is hard to leave Augustana after 11 years, but this decision was about being able to invest even more into my son’s life and the love I have for him and my family.  I am excited to be coming back to my hometown of Bloomington-Normal, to a community that is deeply invested in Illinois Wesleyan University.  I am impressed with the dedication of the current student-athletes and I am looking forward to building the program while being able to represent an institution that has invested incredible resources in the lives of its students and has maintained a community with the highest standards of integrity.”

Lloyd has spent the past 11 years leading the Augustana swimming and diving programs, where he led the Vikings to six CCIW Championships over the past four years. The Augie women won the title in 2022, 2024, and 2025, while the men took home titles in each of the past three seasons. The women’s title in 2022 marked the program’s first in 25 years, while 2024 was the first time the men’s and women’s program claimed the titles in the same season in school history. During his tenure in Rock Island, Ill. Lloyd coached 64 CCIW Individual Champions, two NCAA qualifiers, and led his squads to an 83-41 dual-meet record. He coached the program’s first All-American in 39 years and his swimmers produced 104 All-CCIW performances, 80 program records, seven NCAA cut times, and five CCIW records.

He coached the CCIW First-Year Student-Athlete of the Meet in 2023 (men) and 2024 (women), as well as the CCIW Men’s Swimming Student-Athlete of the Year in 2019 and 2025. Most recently, Lloyd’s Augustana teams won the 2025 CCIW Championships behind three conference meet records.

Illinois Wesleyan will be Lloyd’s fourth stop around the conference, as he was previously an assistant coach at Wheaton. He helped lead the Thunder women to four straight conference championships as well as a top-10 national finish in 2013. Lloyd was instrumental in the mentorship of three-time national champion Kirsty Nitz, who set a national record in the 50 freestyle. In his final season at Wheaton, the men’s team also captured a CCIW title.

Lloyd’s experience includes stops at Hendrix College and Lawrence University as well as Normal West High School. In 2007-08, while serving as Lawrence’s interim head coach, Lloyd was voted the Midwest Conference Women’s Coach of the Year. Lloyd was named the IHSA Girls Sectional Coach of the Year in 2005 after leading Normal West to an IHSA sectional title – the first in the history of the school district.

Lloyd’s other coaching endeavors include mentorship from coaches Dave Durden, Nort Thornton and Nick Folker at the University of California in Berkeley California; running the Josh Davis Ultimate Swim Camp with five-time Olympic medalist Josh Davis; working the Total Performance and Collegeswimming.com swim camps and serving as Clinic Coordinator at the University of Michigan Swim Camp. Lloyd coached with Club Wolverine at the University of Michigan, where he worked with six Olympians, including Michael Phelps, under legendary distance coach Jon Urbanchek. He was also a clinic coach at the elite level at the United States Naval Academy Water Polo Camp in 2009.

Prior to his career in coaching, Lloyd worked on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., including serving as the web technology director for the United States House of Representatives House Administration committee. He has been a featured speaker for countless clinics and events, including Future Coaches of America and emcee for the Safe Families for Children annual gala.

A native of Normal, Lloyd was a standout at Millikin University. There, he was a five-time All-America performer, a four-time team MVP, and a nine-time individual conference champion. He was voted the CCIW’s Swimmer of the Year in 2000 and received Millikin’s Lindsey Medallion Athlete of the Year in 2002. Lloyd was inducted into Millikin’s Athletics Hall of Fame in 2011.