Former WR Holder Mary Descenza Mohler Headlines Georgia Aquatic Hall of Fame Class

After a three-year delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Georgia Aquatic Hall of Fame (GAHOF) inducted four new members on Friday — former world record holder Mary Descenza Mohler, national diving champion Jud Campbell, and coaches Tommie Lee Jackson, Jr. and Harvey Humphries — making up its 10th-ever class.

Previous GAHOF inductees include two-time Olympic gold medalist Steve Lundquist, longtime University of Georgia head coach Jack Bauerle, and former American record holder Mary Ellen (Blanchard) Warta.

Check out the full bios below for Mohler, Campbell, Jackson, Jr., and Humphries:

Mary Descenza Mohler

Mohler was recruited to the University of Georgia from the Academy Bullets, where she was the three-time Illinois Swimmer of the year and was coached by Bill Shaltz.

She swam for Georgia from 2003-06, where she was a member of the 2005 NCAA Championship team that also was the first team to ever win all five relays at an NCAA Championship meet.  For the other three years that Mohler swam for the Bulldogs, they finished 2nd.

Mohler was a 28-time All-American, which ties for first on Georgia’s all-time list, and a 24-time SEC medalist (15 gold, eight silver, and one bronze), which is third on the Bulldogs’ all-time list. She was also a 14-time NCAA champion (4 time 200 fly, 2 time 100 fly, 2 time 800 free relay, 2 time 200 medley relay, 2 time 400 medley relay, and 2 time 400 free relay) which is 2nd on the UGA all time list.

In 2006, Mohler won the Lisa Coole Award for Leadership and the Honda Award, which went to the top American female collegiate athlete across 12 sports. She was later inducted into Georgia’s Circle of Honor in 2018.

Internationally, Mohler made the U.S. National Team and competed at the 2001 World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan (silver – 400m medley relay), 2002 Pan Pacific Championships in Yokohama, Japan (silver – 200m butterfly), 2003 World Championships  in Barcelona, Spain (silver – 400m medley relay), 2005 World Championships in Montreal, Canada (gold – 800m freestyle relay, silver – 400m medley relay, bronze – 400m freestyle relay), 2006 Short Course World Championships in Shanghai, China (silver – 400m medley relay), 2006 Pan Pacific Championships in Victoria, Canada (bronze – 100m butterfly), 2008 Short Course World Championships in Manchester, Great Britain (gold – 200m butterfly), and 2009 World Championships in Rome, Italy, where she broke the world record in the 200m butterfly (2:04.14).

Jud Campbell

Campbell was a USA Diving junior national champion and YMCA National Champion before competing at the University of Georgia from 1998-2001. In Athens, he was a three-time SEC champion (the program’s first since Billy Ray Schmidt in 1967), nine-time NCAA All-American, and three-time Bulldogs swimming and diving MVP. He was also named Georgia Diver of the Year on four occasions. Campbell graduated from Georgia with a degree in management information systems before attending Pepperdine University Law School. He is now a lieutenant in the San Diego Police Department.

Harvey Humphries

Born in 1957 in Little Rock, Arkansas, Humphries went on to swim at the University of Georgia, where he was a co-captain his senior year. After graduating, he served 42 years as head coach of the Athens Bulldog Swim Club as well as 38 years as an assistant coach and then senior associate coach of the Georgia men’s and women’s swimming and diving program under Bauerle.

Humphries’ main responsibilities as Georgia’s associate head coach were recruiting, being in charge of the distance group, and serving as head coach in the absence of the head coach. During his time with the Bulldogs, their men’s teams had 24 top-15 NCAA finishes, 17 top-10 finishes, and 3 top-5 finishes while the women’s teams had 35 top-15 NCAA finishes, 29 top-10 finishes, 21 top-5 finishes, and seven national championships

Georgia claimed 24 NCAA and 57 SEC titles in the 500-yard freestyle, 1650 free, and 400 IM events. Humphries has worked with over 20 Olympians, 100 All-Americans, four junior national champions, and four U.S. National champions for the Athens Bulldog Swim Club. He has also served on National Team coaching staffs for the U.S. Olympic Festival, two U.S. National Team distance camps, two USA National Team select camps, three National Junior Teams, and three World University Games teams.

Humphries’ list of awards include the inaugural Walt Schleuter Award for the top age group coach for teaching excelling in stroke technique, three Georgia Senior Coach of the Year honors, and the 2014 Swammy Award for women’s NCAA coach of the year after he stepped in for a suspended Bauerle and led the Bulldogs to a national title. In 2021, he was named by the College Swim Coaches Association of America as one of the top 100 swim coaches of the last 100 years.

Tommie Lee Jackson, Jr.

Jackson, Jr. born in 1946 in Moultrie, Georgia. He graduated from William Bryant High School, where he also learned to be a swimming instructor and lettered in football and basketball.

From 1969-70, Jackson, Jr. served a one-year tour of duty for the U.S. army in Vietnam as an artilleryman. He was awarded the Army Commendation Medal for his meritorious service during his tour of duty.

Jackson, Jr. attended Albany State from 1972-76, where he lettered as a diver and a swimmer (if needed). He graduated cum laude with a bachelor of science degree. During his time at Albany State, he launched a lifelong career with the Red Cross as a certified instructor to teach WSI and Lifeguard Training. After coaching elementary school and middle school swimming, he started his club coaching career in 1989 when he became head coach of the City of Atlanta Dolphins.

At the age of 40, Jackson, Jr. began a career of coaching excellence in swimming at the age group level, the senior level, Olympic level, Paralympic level, and masters level. He was also a pioneer for diversity and inclusion for all swimmers at the state, national, and global level.

Jackson, Jr. coached Paralympian Curtis Lovejoy for 36 years. Lovejoy was a five-time USA Paralympian (1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012) and is considered to be the most accomplished Paralympian in American history. Lovejoy broke 12 world records, five Pan Am records, and 14 American records. He was inducted into the Georgia Aquatic Hall of Fame in 2013 before passing away in March of 2021.

Jackson, Jr. has also coached five Olympic Trials qualifiers: Sabir Muhammad (1996, 2000, and 2004), Muhajid El Amin (2004), Derek Cox (2021), and Myles Simon (2024). In 2016, Jackson, Jr. was named the head Olympic coach for Haiti when his CAD swimmer, Naomy Grand-Pierre, punched her ticket to Rio in the 50m breaststroke and the 50m freestyle. In 2021, Emily Grand-Pierre represented Haiti in the 50m breaststroke at the Tokyo Olympics.

Jackson, Jr. has also coached one of the top American masters swimmers, Marianne Countryman, from 2012 2023. During this period, Countryman has achieved 15 top-10 world rankings and 83 national top 10 rankings (nine of them were No. 1 rankings.)

Jackson, Jr. was heavily involved in diversity and inclusion. He has been the chairman of the Georgia LSC Diversity Committee since it was formed. He has served or is still serving on the USA Outreach Committees and Camps, USA Swimming National Committee for Diversity and Inclusion, Diversity and Inclusion Committee for the Southern Zone. Jackson, Jr. received the Diversity in Aquatics Jim Ellis Award in 2020. In 2016, he was the first coach of color to receive the USA Swimming Diversity and Inclusion Award.