Michigan Announces Five-Year Contract Extension For Head Coach Mike Bottom

The University of Michigan has announced a five-year contract extension for head coach Mike Bottom, keeping the long-tenured coach in Ann Arbor through the 2026-27 season.

Bottom has been the head coach of the men’s swimming & diving program at Michigan for the last 13 years, and has also led the women’s program for the last eight seasons beginning in 2013.

“I am thrilled to extend Mike’s leadership of our men’s and women’s swimming and diving programs well into the future,” said Michigan Athletics Director Warde Manuel. “Mike is passionate about this university, the sport of swimming and diving, and his student-athletes, and I look forward to his continued enthusiasm and guidance of our combined programs.”

During his time with the Wolverines, Bottom has coached the men’s team to eight top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championships, highlighted by winning the national title in 2013.

He also helped propel the women’s team to three straight Big Ten Championship titles from 2016 to 2018, the program’s first conference three-peat since 1996-98.

“I would like to thank Warde Manuel for continuing to have faith in me and my staff to lead this great program,” said Bottom.

“As I enter this multi-year agreement as the head coach for the Swim and Dive program, I recall what I learned when I started here; that in order to win championships you have to have the support of many people pushing in the same direction. I look forward to leading those who are here and those who choose to join us in the future. Those who stay will be champions! Go Blue!”

Bottom is a six-time winner of the Big Ten Men’s Swimming Coach of the Year, earning five straight titles from 2011 to 2015 and then adding another in 2020. He was also named CSCAA Coach of the Year in 2013.

Bottom has also coached more than a dozen Olympians over the course of his career, most recently Canadian Olympic gold medalist Maggie MacNeil.

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Xman
1 year ago

Mike Cavic did an interview about how he stopped at Michigan to train and had a conversation about who Michigan wanted on their team vs When Mike was at Cal. It puts this in perspective.

Bobby Swim
1 year ago

Interesting. Rumor has it he’s been applying for lots of jobs over the years. Stanford a few years back and Notre Dame this past year. Wonder what the real story is.

Blake pierogi
1 year ago

As a great woman once said: “haters gonna hate”

Time For Barta To Go
1 year ago

Here for the comments.

Kat
1 year ago

Macneil is more of Bishop’s product. Same as Haughey

I was there
Reply to  Kat
1 year ago

Big part of Mike’s job is hiring ppl like Bishop.

Coach
1 year ago

It’s interesting how (not just in this situation), 5th years going into the transfer portal is now being used to bash coaches/programs. Heck I even saw a comment on another article that implied an athlete simply not taking their 5th year was somehow one more knock against a coach/program. Don’t guess people were expecting that to a be a thing when this first came down the pipeline.

Oldmanswimmer
Reply to  Coach
1 year ago

I think a lot of programs aren’t used to having athletes actually graduate in four years. So, they expect the students to stay where they are, which is usually a bad idea if one is going on to graduate school. A student leaving to go somewhere else to swim for a first year of graduate school should be a considered a program success.

Xman
Reply to  Oldmanswimmer
1 year ago

This might be a contributor to why he is renewed.

Blake pierogi
Reply to  Coach
1 year ago

And to add on, u of m grad school admissions is no easy ride

Xman
Reply to  Blake pierogi
1 year ago

Neither is Cal. Some of friends in academia (professional students who get paid) say there is stigma about doing Graduate studies at the same university you did undergrad.

Scotty P
1 year ago

“You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” – Harvey Dent

Last edited 1 year ago by Scotty P
Togger
1 year ago

I don’t get the incentive to do this from the AD’s perspective. Bottom clearly has no intention of taking another job and after this year he’d be unlikely to get a similarly prestigious job elsewhere. Why extend now rather than giving him a year to prove this one was a blip?

Time For Barta To Go
Reply to  Togger
1 year ago

recruiting * cough * recruiting * cough *

I was there
Reply to  Togger
1 year ago

1 not good year after a huge Olympic success. Will he be forever in the bad year situation? Or go back to 30+ years of success he had? I believe in the positive side.

About James Sutherland

James Sutherland

James swam five years at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ontario, specializing in the 200 free, back and IM. He finished up his collegiate swimming career in 2018, graduating with a bachelor's degree in economics. In 2019 he completed his graduate degree in sports journalism. Prior to going to Laurentian, James swam …

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