The University of Florida Gators have released the men’s and women’s swimming and diving schedule for the 2016-2017 season, which will begin with the annual All-Florida Invitational later this month. Both teams will compete together in a joint schedule, save for the women’s dual meet with Arkansas, which includes eight regular season dual meets.
The Gator’s season kicks off with the All-Florida Invitational in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, from September 23rd-25th. Next, they travel to Tallahassee, Florida on October 13th to take on the Florida State Seminoles. Next, they travel to Bloomington, Indiana for a tri-meet against Indiana University and the University of Texas on October 21st and 22nd. On October 28th the Gators travel to Athens, Georgia for a dual meet against the Georgia Bulldogs. The women travel to Fayetteville, Arkansas on November 3rd to take on the University of Arkansas without their men’s counterparts. The men rejoin the women to take on Texas A&M in College Station, Texas, on November 5th. Their next two competitions both take place in Athens, Georgia, first at the Georgia Tech Invitational from November 17th-19th and next at U.S. Nationals from November 30th-December 3rd. Afterwards, the Gators travel to Boca Raton on January 6th to swim Florida Atlantic. The Gators swim Miami and Colorado State in Miami at a tri-meet on January 7th. On January 21st, the Gators travel to Auburn, Alabama to swim the Tigers. The Gators wrap up their regular season with a home meet against the University of Tennessee on January 28th. The championship season for the Gators consists of the SEC Championship from February 14th-18th, the Gators Last Chance Meet from February 26th-28th, and the NCAA Championship from March 23rd-25th.
The Gators will carry momentum from their 2016 signing class, as well as the 2016 Olympic Games. On the men’s side, the 2016 signing class included Maxime Rooney, the number one recruit in the nation, and Chandler Bray, the national high school record holder in the 100-yard breaststroke. The two will join Caeleb Dressel, the 2015 NCAA Champion in the 50 and 100-yard freestyle who won a gold medal as apart of the 400-meter freestyle relay in Rio. On the women’s side, they do not have any current Olympians on their roster, but they do bring in four-time state champion Victoria Bindi from the state of Florida. Bindi has been a 50.29 in the 100-yard freestyle.