2022 MEN’S NCAA SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Wednesday, March 23 – Saturday, March 26, 2022
- McAuley Aquatic Center, Atlanta, Georgia
- Official Psych Sheets
The official psych sheets for the 2022 Men’s NCAA Division I Swimming & Diving Championships were released on Wednesday morning, with the University of Texas forced to scratch one swimmer after the team qualified 19 (one over the maximum) for the competition.
YOU CAN SEE ALL OF THE RELEVANT DOCUMENTS HERE:
- Official Psych Sheets (updated March 9)
- Swimmers Invited by Team
- Alternates List
- Eligible Relays
Now that the official psych sheets are available, let’s take a look at how the 2022 cutlines in each event stack up against previous years. For those who may not know, when we talk about “cutlines” in this post, we’re referring to the slowest time that earned an invite in each event.
The invite times got significantly faster in all 13 events this year versus last year. Some of the most significant changes came in the 200 breast and 200 fly, both of which got 1.05 seconds faster this year. Here is the chart comparing 2022 invited times to 2021’s:
| Event | 2022 Cutline | 2021 Cutline | 2022 vs 2021 Change |
| 50 free | 19.28 | 19.46 | -0.18 seconds |
| 100 free | 42.34 | 42.88 | -0.54 seconds |
| 200 free | 1:33.08 | 1:34.04 | -0.96 seconds |
| 500 free | 4:14.96 | 4:16.75 | -1.79 seconds |
| 1650 free | 14:55.21 | 15:01.33 | -5.12 seconds |
| 100 back | 45.87 | 46.37 | -0.50 seconds |
| 200 back | 1:40.92 | 1:41.81 | -0.89 seconds |
| 100 breast | 52.20 | 52.40 | -0.20 seconds |
| 200 breast | 1:53.23 | 1:54.28 | -1.05 seconds |
| 100 fly | 45.57 | 46.29 | -0.72 seconds |
| 200 fly | 1:42.42 | 1:43.47 | -1.05 seconds |
| 200 IM | 1:43.36 | 1:44.15 | -0.79 seconds |
| 400 IM | 3:43.50 | 3:45.67 | -2.17 seconds |
Let’s take a moment to explore just how fast breaststroke has gotten in the NCAA. The invited time this year came down to 52.20 in the 100 breast. That time would have been fast enough to qualify for the A final at NCAAs as recently as 2018. Just think about that: the time it took just to qualify for the meet this year would have been fast enough to make you an All-American just 4 years ago.
Now, let’s examine the last 3 years of invited times. What you’ll notice is that most of the events had slower cutlines in 2021, which was due to the number of swimmers and teams sitting out of the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
| Event | 2022 Cutline | 2021 Cutline | 2020 Cutline |
| 50 free | 19.28 | 19.46 | 19.32 |
| 100 free | 42.34 | 42.88 | 42.57 |
| 200 free | 1:33.08 | 1:34.04 | 1:34.07 |
| 500 free | 4:14.96 | 4:16.75 | 4:16.49 |
| 1650 free | 14:55.21 | 15:01.33 | 14:57.07 |
| 100 back | 45.87 | 46.37 | 46.22 |
| 200 back | 1:40.92 | 1:41.81 | 1:41.49 |
| 100 breast | 52.20 | 52.40 | 52.46 |
| 200 breast | 1:53.23 | 1:54.28 | 1:54.03 |
| 100 fly | 45.57 | 46.29 | 45.97 |
| 200 fly | 1:42.42 | 1:43.47 | 1:43.18 |
| 200 IM | 1:43.36 | 1:44.15 | 1:43.79 |
| 400 IM | 3:43.50 | 3:45.67 | 3:44.36 |
Notably, the cutline this year is faster in every single event, not only versus 2021, but 2020 as well. The 200 free is another event that has gotten notably faster. The invited time has come down from its pre-pandemic mark of 1:34.0 and is now down at 1:33.0.
5th years making it much faster this year. Suspect it will go back to 2021 levels next year.
There were tons of redshirts last year that made a lot of cuts slower than the previous two years.
2020 levels are probably a better representation of what we’ll see in the future.
I agree. Very good points…but we have 3 more years of possible 5th year swimmers. Probably will stay crazy fast for a while.
It wasn’t too long ago 1:33 would have won NCAAs in the 200 free! Also, those breaststroke and fly cuts would have won many years in the early 2000s
95% of qualifiers were born 2000 or after.
Does Dean Farris get to swim the 50?
Yes – any invite can swim up to 2 additional individual events that they have B cuts in. The men 50 free B standard is a 19.96
Is this year the fastest cut line in every event?
Everything but the 1650 (14:53.34 in 2018), 200 Fly (1:42.35 in 2019) and 400 IM (3:43.42 in 2019).