By Terin Frodyma on SwimSwam
2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships
Dates: Wednesday, March 25–Saturday, March 28 Location: McAuley Aquatic Center, Atlanta, GA Defending Champions: Texas (1x) Championship Central Psych Sheets Live Results Live Video Scored Psych SheetsMEN’S 200 IM
NCAA Record: 1:36.34, Leon Marchand (Arizona State) – 2023 American Record: 1:37.91, Destin Lasco (Cal) – 2024 U.S. Open Record: 1:36.34, Leon Marchand (Arizona State) – 2023 Championship Record: 1:36.34, Leon Marchand (Arizona State) – 2023 2025 Champion: 1:37.91, Hubert Kos (Texas)The absence of 2025 Champion Hubert Kos has cracked this event wide open; with the top six entries all under 1:41 and the top 15 all faster than 1:42, this race, which was seen as a likely repeat for Kos, now offers the opportunity for new names to shine in Atlanta.
Indiana’s Owen McDonald comes in as the top seed in 1:40.11; just behind him is fellow Big Ten swimmer Colin Geer of Michigan in 1:40.15.
Upperclassmen Lead the Charge
This event was loaded with upperclassman talent last season, and in 2026 that remains the case: McDonald is in his senior year and enters as the top seed, while Geer is a junior and just behind him. The next two are also seniors or older: Baylor Nelson of Texas, 3rd at 1:40.29, and NC State grad student Arsenio Bustos, 4th in 1:40.39. When you throw in Texas, junior Will Modglin (5th, 1:40.58), that makes the top five in the event, all of whom are older.
Arsenio Bustos (photo: Jack Spitser)
McDonald comes in with that top entry time of 1:40.11, which he swam at the Big Ten Championships, narrowly outpacing Geer, who finished 2nd. He has experience in this position, coming back as the highest placing returner from last season’s ‘A’ final, where he finished 3rd in 1:39.42, which also stands as his lifetime best in this event. Geer, on the other hand, swam his best time to get silver at Big Tens, which was a four-tenth improvement over his NCAA time from last season of 1:40.55, which earned him a 10th-place finish. Modglin also has some NCAA Championships experience in this race, having qualified for the championship final in 2025 before being disqualified for an illegal back-to-breast turn. However, he touched last in that final anyway. That time he swam in prelims was his career best of 1:40.45, 13 hundredths faster than his season best.
Bustos has been in some of the best form that we have seen from him in years as of late, having won this race at the ACC Championships in February in 1:40.39, and swimming several competitive times heading into these NCAA Championships. However, he has not been able to top his 2024 NCAA Championship time of 1:39.83 in this event, which is the fastest he has ever been in the 200 IM. With plenty of championship experience and potentially riding that high from ACCs, if he can get below that 1:39 mid-range, he could be eyeing a national title.
North Carolina senior Louis Dramm enters these championships as the #8 seed on the psych sheet following a 3rd place finish in this event at ACCs, and a season best of 1:41.40. He has not been able to get himself down to his lifetime best from NCAAs last season in 1:40.92. He has had a bit of a roller coaster season in this event, having only dipped under the 1:42 mark twice this season, with the other being at the Gamecock Invite in November; otherwise, he hovered around the 1:42-1:43 low range. Ohio State senior Tristan Jankovics was 3rd at Big Tens (1:41.49), and is just outside the pre-meet top 8 here in 9th. He has been 1:41.09 in this event at the 2025 Big Ten Championships, but the way that this race looks at the top, and with how tightly contested the field is behind, it may take a 1:40-mid to low to secure a top 8 spot.
A Dash of Youth
Upperclassmen dominate the top of the event field, but there are still some underclassmen throughout that can play spoiler to the 200 IM field. Among those near the top of the entries is Virginia freshman Maximus Williamson, who is the #6 seed here in 1:40.78, which he went to earn silver at ACCs and swam a career best in the process. Williamson was among the most highly touted recruits coming out of high school, and his freshman season has had its fair share of good days and not-so-good days. Still, his potential is hard to deny, and a big freshman NCAA Championships could be a big momentum boost for the rest of his career with the Cavaliers.
Maximus Williamson (photo: Jack Spitser)
Texas freshman Campbell McKean has established himself as one of the NCAA’s elite breaststroke talents and is also a serious contender in the 200 IM, entering here with the #7 time of 1:41.06. He swam that time at the Texas Hall of Fame Invite in November and has been as fast as 1:41.78 since then, which earned him a 4th-place finish at the SEC Championships. McKean came in as a 1:41-low 200 IMer, and that sub 1:41 swim seems like it could be any day now, and there are not many places better to do it than at these NCAA Championships.
The future of the Big Ten is also well represented, as Northwestern sophomore Joshua Staples (12th, 1:41.61), Indiana freshman Joshua Bey (14th, 1:41.68), and Michigan freshman Luka Mladenovic (15th, 1:41.93) each will be fighting for a top 8 spot and earn some key points. Bey has been on fire as of late, and if he can carry that feeling from Big Tens into these NCAAs, he could see himself land another major timedrop and potentially make an appearance in the lone final. Mladenovic will use his breaststroke prowess, among the best in the field, to try to get himself into position for a 2nd swim in Atlanta as well.
Potential Spoilers
The rest of the field, while their seeding position may not dictate it, could really shake up the top 8. Louisville’s Jackson Millard is seeded #18 with a 1:42.21 entry time, which he set at the ACC Championships, where he earned a tough-fought silver (1:41.33 in finals). That swim was a major time drop, marking his first swim under 1:43.70 and his first best time since the ACC Championships last season.
Daniel Diehl (photo: Jack Spitser)
Texas’ Nate Germonprez, a favorite to win one if not both of the breaststroke events at these championships, is a sneaky threat, disguised as a #13 seed in 1:41.61, he was a 1:40.89 at NCAA’s last season, and with the 200 IM coming on the final day of competition, rather than early in the meet as it has been in years past, if he finds early meet success, Germonprez has a serious chance to make that jump in to the top 8.
NC State’s Daniel Diehl is a wildcard; he has the speed and ability to steal a final spot from one of these higher seeds, despite his #19 seed time of 1:42.24. His career best (1:41.39) may be outside of what it will likely take to crack the top 8, but Diehl could be due for a big swim in this event, having not been under that time since November of 2024 at the Wolfpack Invite, and sitting well outside of the pre-meet top 8.
SwimSwam Picks:
Place Swimmer School Season Best Lifetime Best 1 Owen McDonald Indiana 1:40.11 1:39.23 2 Arsenio Bustos NC State 1:40.39 1:39.83 3 Baylor Nelson Texas 1:40.29 1:40.29 4 Maximus Williamson Virginia 1:40.78 1:40.78 5 Will Modglin Texas 1:40.58 1:40.45 6 Colin Geer Michigan 1:40.15 1:40.15 7 Campbell McKean Texas 1:41.06 1:41.06 8 Tristan Jankovics Ohio State 1:41.49 1:41.09Darkhorse Pick:
William Carrico (Courtesy: UNCW Athletics)
William Carrico, UNC Wilmington – Carrico earned his first CAA 200 IM title in February, notching a massive career best time of 1:42.09, which puts him just a spot outside of the sub 1:42 swimmers in this event. With prelims playing such a massive role here in 2026, Carrico could find himself in a scoring position pending another big swim. His CAA Championships performance was a 2.6-second drop from his former best, which he swam in November in 1:44.69 at the Kellianne Nagy Fall Frenzy Invite. If he can get below 1:42, his chances of scoring will rise drastically.
Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2026 M. NCAA Previews: Upperclassmen Dominate 200 IM Entries, Setting Stage for Tight Top-8 Battle
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