UGA Head Coach Jack Bauerle Gives Commencement Address at Graduation Ceremony

Jack Bauerle, head swimming and diving coach at the University of Georgia, can now add “commencement speaker” to his ever-growing list of accomplishments. On December 17, Bauerle gave the commencement address to the graduating class at the 2021 fall undergraduate ceremony.

Baurele began his speech by congratulating the students and their parents, saying “I know this has been quite a journey for you also. I know this because I know a lot of swimming parents.”

The coach also reflected on his time as a student, struggling in his first year at UGA. A handful of professors in the English department took him under their wings and guided Bauerle through first-year struggles. He reflected, “when I earned my degree, and it was shaky for a while… I never imagined I would have the privilege of addressing such an extraordinary group of students.” He stressed the importance of relying on others and playing active roles in other peoples’ lives.

“When I got the call from President Morehead,” he added, “I wondered why he was asking me to do the speech today.” Bauerle speculated that it had to do with Chase Kalisz and Jay Litherland taking first and second in the 400 IM at the Tokyo Olympics, adding it had been over 30 years since two swimmers from the same team won gold and silver in the same event.

Bauerle then drew out lessons from his 43 years as a swim coach. He said to the graduates, “you might find this hard to believe, but the history of Olympic medalists is absolutely littered with people who are simply above average athletes and not great athletes… It means achievement at the highest levels is not limited to a select few, it’s pretty much up to you.”

He expanded on this idea by stressing four traits he inspires in his swimmers: “I encourage all of my athletes to be persistent and consistent. These two traits are the difference between an above average career and a spectacular one.” He added that while those traits are important, they work best when paired with effort and positive attitudes.

Realize this: you will be tested when you leave here. How you react to challenges will be the measure of you as a person. Learn from your failures, be persistent and consistent, put forth your very best attitude and effort, and your life will be fuller.

Bauerle concluded his speech by reflecting on what it would be like to be a student in today’s world. He said, “It’s a crazy time and it’s natural for you to have any kind of trepidation as you venture out. Thankfully, there is one constant that unites us: that is the University of Georgia.”

UGA President Jere Morehead first introduced Bauerle as someone whose “numerous achievements speak for themselves.” The Pennsylvania native’s achievements include seven Women’s NCAA Championships, 78 women’s NCAA champions, and 179 SEC champions. On the men’s side, his accolades include 83 SEC individual champions, 120 All-Americans, and 21 men’s NCAA champions.

He started coaching the UGA women in 1978 and began coaching the men in 1983. Prior to that, he competed at UGA from 1971-1974. He was also Team USA’s Women’s Head Coach at the 2008 Olympics, and served as assistant coach in 2000, 2016, and 2020. 

Bauerle has also been inducted into multiple coaching halls of fame and was a 2012 recipient of the Bill Hartman award, given to a former UGA student-athlete based on 20 years of professional excellence. Earlier in December, he was named one of the 100 Greatest Coaches by CSCAA.

Video of Baurele’s introduction and commencement address is available below, starting at 1:08:56.