Frank Busch Interview

Frank Busch, head swimming coach for the University of Arizona Wildcats, has had only 36 years to hone his craft.

"Has it been that long?" Busch said. "That's right—I've been coaching since I was 16 years old."

Busch began his coaching career as a high school student in his hometown of Edgewood, Kentucky. His first full-time coaching position was for the Northern Kentucky Piranhas' age-group and senior programs from 1974-78. From 1979-80, he was an assistant coach for the Cincinnati Marlins, where he coached current Arizona assistant coach Greg Rhodenbaugh.

Busch's success has been non-stop, the championships, records and Olympic athletes - too many to count. In December, 21-year-old Wildcat Simon Burnett broke the oldest men's record on the books, which was the 200 Freestyle set in 1987 by Olympian Matt Biondi. Burnett's was 1:32.22; Biondi's time was 1:33.03.

To what does Busch attribute Burnett's astounding success? "God-given ability," Busch said. "Simon has a great feel for the water, amazing lung capacity and he's a great kicker. Any coach would hope for just one of these attributes, but Simon's got all three, and that's pretty special."

Entering his sixteenth year as head coach of the Wildcats, Busch is much too modest a man to take any credit for Burnett's accomplishments, but the Wildcats' consistent success is testimony enough:

• Last year, the University of Arizona women's team finished the NCAA Championships in third place, upsetting Stanford, California and Florida, and the men's placed fourth.
• The women's team has had top-10 finishes for 14 years, with NCAA runner-up finishes in 1998 and 2000. They took the conference title in Pac-10 in 2000.
• The men have placed top 10 in 12 of the last 15 years, with seven straight top-10 finishes. In 2000, they had a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships, the best in Wildcat program history.
• In each of the last 14 seasons, University of Arizona swimming and diving has produced at least one individual NCAA champion, with nine national champion relays during the same time.
• Under Busch's leadership, the women's team has had 200 individual All-America honors, 63 All-America relay performances, 26 total Pac-10 titles and 18 total NCAA titles.
• Under Busch, the men's team has had 146 individual All-America honors, 63 All-America relay performances, 34 total Pac-10 titles and 16 total NCAA titles.

Busch himself isn't lacking in honors either:

• As head coach at the University of Cincinnati, he was twice named Metro Conference Women's Coach of the Year.
• Four-time Pac-10 Women's Coach of the Year. (1991, 1998, 2000, 2004)
• 2004 NCAA Women's Swimming Coach of the Year.
• Named assistant coach on the staff of the women's U.S. Olympic Team at the 28th Summer Games in Athens.
• Twice selected Pac-10 Men's Coach of the Year. (1993 and 2000)
• USA Swimming Coach of the Year. (1998)
• U.S. Olympic Committee 1998 USOC National Coach of the Year.

Characteristically diffident, Busch deflects the credit. "I've got a wonderful group of people around me," he said. "We've got outstanding athletes who are very excited about this year. They have their eye on great performances."

"Our success has been in trying to sell the kids on a consistent approach to the season," said Busch. "Our goal is to be consistent in our training and teach the kids to be consistent in their thought processes. Great coaches and athletes in combination with consistency is a formula for success."

With this year's NCAA championships just around the corner, Busch is confident in his team. "We plan our season around getting as many of our swimmers to that level as possible," he said. "The NCAA Championships are the most exciting meets in the world, and it's great to be a part of."

While the Division I NCAA Championships have been dominated by Auburn University in recent years, Busch believes that the competition is getting more intense. "There are half-dozen teams on each side that are outstanding," he said. "We just want to be part of that.

"From what I've seen, the best women's team currently is Georgia," Busch added. "As far as the men's teams, I don't know who has the best team this year; there are so many outstanding programs. But this is the first year that I haven't thought that Auburn was the best."

Unlike many coaches, Busch subscribes to the concept of the "student-athlete" with emphasis on the "student" end. "We stress work in the classroom as well as in the pool," he said. Every year during his tenure at the University of Arizona, both men and women swimmers have earned Academic All-Pac-10 recognition, and his teams' grade-point averages are consistently among the best in the Wildcat athletic department.