2025-26 NCAA Men’s Power Rankings: Pre-Invite Edition ...Middle East

By Sean Griffin on SwimSwam

As in previous years, SwimSwam’s Power Rankings are somewhere between the CSCAA-style dual meet rankings and a pure prediction of NCAA finish order. SwimSwam’s rankings take into account how a team looks at the moment, while keeping the end of the season in mind through things like a team’s previous trajectory and NCAA scoring potential. These rankings are by nature subjective, and a jumping-off point for discussion. If you disagree with any team’s ranking, feel free to make your case in our comments section.

James Sutherland, Braden Keith, Madeline Folsom, Robert Gibbs, Sophie Kaufman, Anya Pelshaw, and Terin Frodyma contributed to this report.   

Previous Rankings: 

It’s been about a month since our last Power Rankings, and while that’s not a long stretch, the men’s top-10 picture has shifted far more dramatically than what we’ve seen on the women’s side. The women experienced almost no movement among the top-tier programs, but the men tell a different story. Arizona State jumped from fourth to second, Stanford climbed from 11th to eighth, and Georgia rose two spots from seventh to fifth after an exceptional month. As a result of those surges, Cal, Indiana, Florida, and NC State each moved down one slot.

Further down the list, there were also plenty of changes: Florida State rose three spots, while Louisville, Southern California, and North Carolina each moved up two. Conversely, Purdue had the steepest drop, falling six positions. Michigan slid downward four spots, and Kentucky and Tennessee each dropped two.

Arizona, Alabama, and Auburn entered the rankings after missing out in our early-season edition, not because they were performing poorly, but because limited early-season data and the reliability of diving points led to more conservative picks. The consistency of all three teams in dual meets over the past month has pushed them into the top 25, resulting in Wisconsin (23rd in the last rankings), Georgia Tech (24th), and SMU (25th) falling out.

We anticipate the upcoming invites to provide clearer insight into where teams stand across the board, so additional movement throughout the rankings will follow once those meets wrap up in early December.

Honorable Mentions: Penn State, SMU, Army, and Wisconsin.

#25: Yale Bulldogs -3 (Previous Rank: 22)

The Ivy League always starts the official season early, so it’s tough to know how much training the team had before their meets so far, but they already show solid relay potential – A.P.

#24: Virginia Tech Hokies -3 (Previous Rank: 21)

The Hokies are roughly where we expected them to be this season after losing their top swimmers. They opened with wins over Duke and George Washington but came up short against NC State and Ohio State at the Raleigh Rumble. Brendan Whitfield is a bright spot on the team, with his 50 free currently ranked 9th in the nation. – M.F. 

#23: Arizona Wildcats — (Previous Rank: NR)

Arizona doesn’t have much in the way of star power, but they’ve quietly put together a strong start to the season. Haakon Naughton is already under 45 in the 100 fly (and sits #5 nationally), and the Wildcats have flashed some speed on the relays. – R.G.

#22: Kentucky Wildcats -2 (Previous Rank: 20)

Kentucky has yet to win a meet this season, though their opponents have been some of the top teams in the NCAA. They have a strong distance swimmer core with NCAA finalists Levi Sandidge and Carson Hick both starting this season faster than they did last season. The two also set times in the 1500 at the World Cup that rank at the top of the NCAA this season when converted, but they are missing the crucial relay legs needed for a better NCAA finish. – M.F.

#21: Purdue Boilermakers -6 (Previous Rank: 15)

Backstroker Blake Rowe is heating up at the right time, having posted a pair of lifetime bests just two weeks ago. The Boilermakers continue to impress on the boards under David Boudia (as expected), but the production between the lane lines hasn’t matched the level of their diving, leading to the biggest drop in our rankings. – T.F.

#20: Texas A&M Aggies -3 (Previous Rank: 17)

Breaststroker Will Heck has already appeared on more free relays (two) than he did in his two years at NC State (zero). Does that matter in the grand scheme of things? Probably not, but it does look like Heck will be dueling with Roberto Bonilla Flores for medley relay breaststroke duties after Travis Gulledge transferred to IU in the offseason. – R.G. 

#19: Alabama Crimson Tide — (Previous Rank: NR)

Tommy Hagar is swimming very well for the Crimson Tide, and currently ranks 3rd in the NCAA in the 200 back. The Crimson Tide will need to find a few more relay legs to safely crack the top 20 come NCAAs – their leaders this season are all in middle-distance events. – B.K. 

#18: Auburn Tigers — (Previous Rank: NR)

The Auburn men have had a strong start to the season, which jumped them up our rankings. They started the season with a 2nd place finish at the SMU Invite and have built from there, finishing 3rd at the GT Dual Meet Tournament. They have a pair of strong breaststrokers with Uros Zivanovic leading freshman Maston Ballew, who has set new personal best times in both breaststroke events so far this season, and their divers have been performing well in dual meets to bring in crucial points. – M.F.

#17. UNC Tar Heels +2 (2025 NCAA Rank: 19)

I know it’s not always how things happen, but still…it feels like you’d expect a team coached by an elite breaststroker to have a strong breaststroke crew, and sure enough, Ben Delmar and Xavier Ruiz have been the best (non-Longhorn) breaststroke duo so far this season. – R.G. 

#16: USC Trojans +2 (Previous Rank: 18)

USC has been battle tested heading into this halfway point of the season; Moritz Wesemann has been stellar on the boards, putting him in contention for a national title on both 1-meter and 3-meter. Meanwhile the Trojans have had great help in the pool from the likes of Krzysztof Chmielewski, Michal Chmielewski, and Thomas Olsen in an effort to reach a top 15 spot. – T.F.

#15: Florida State Seminoles +3 (Previous Rank: 18)

In spite of losses to LSU, Auburn, and Alabama, the Seminoles’ top-end (which is most relevant to their NCAA finish) has looked very good this season. Mathias Christensen has become a great lieutenant for Michel Arkhangelskiy’s second season, and the Seminole relays (Neal Studd’s specialty) have punched way above their weight class. – B.K. 

#14: Michigan Wolverines -4 (Previous Rank: 10)

A bunch of key absences plummet the Wolverines down the rankings. This team has a bright future, but international recruits not showing up is always a bigger risk than domestic recruits. – B.K. 

#13: Ohio State Buckeyes — (Previous Rank: 13)

The Buckeyes haven’t done much racing yet this season, but it’s a promsing sign Matthew Klinge has already hit a PR in the 100 fly and is on the verge of going sub-45 for the first time. – R.G.

#12: Louisville Cardinals +2 (Previous Rank: 14)

The last few years have been relatively rough for the Cardinals (they haven’t finished in the top ten since 2021), but there’s been promising signs so far this season, including a 200 free relay that currently ranks 4th in the nation, and strong performances from the freshmen. Nikita Sheremet already has several sub-19 relay splits under his belt. – R.G.

#11. LSU Tigers +1 (Previous Rank: 12)

Rick Bishop has been building this team for a few years, and it looks like this could be the season they really could break through. Jere Hribar is fast and they’re winning some big dual meets. – B.K.

The Tigers are off to a roaring start, including a 200 medley relay squad that’s currently ranked #3 nationally. – R.G. 

#10: Tennessee Volunteers -2 (Previous Rank: 8)

The Volunteers are 1-2 so far this season, dropping meets to Texas and Louisville while picking up a win against Auburn while trying to find their groove post-Crooks. Gui Caribe is swimming well, heading into invites as the 3rd-ranked 50 freestyler and 5th-ranked 100 freestyler this season, and he’s ahead of where he was at this point last year in both events. – M.F.

#9. Virginia Cavaliers — (Previous Rank: 9)

The Virginia freshmen are living up to the moment so far, and the Cavaliers rank 5th so far in Swimulator scoring this season. Heavy reliance on freshmen always leaves room for potential end-of-season volatility, so this team’s range could be as high as 4th or as low as 10th or 11th. – B. K.

On paper, the 800 free relay may be the Cavaliers’ strongest relay this season, if they decide to stack it with Maximus Williamson and Thomas Heilman. Alas, that event isn’t part of next week’s Dual Meet Challenge, which means any Virginia fans who were hoping to finally see UVA swim that at event at midseason will be disappointed. – R.G.

The freshman men look strong so far but what happens at the end of the season matters most. High risk, high reward, and freshman on the men’s side specifically take longer to make an impact at the NCAA level. – A.P.

#8: Stanford Cardinal +3 (Previous Rank: 11)

The Cardinal men have been excellent to this point in the season, beating Cal by nearly 90 points at their double dual with ASU a few weeks ago. Canadian Worlds team member Ethan Ekk is leading strong freestyle and backstroke groups that could battle for a top five spot at this year’s NCAA Championships. – B.K. 

#7: NC State Wolfpack -1 (Previous Rank: 6)

Kaii Winkler is becoming the rock that NC State needs him to be. As a freshman last year, he didn’t score any individual points at NCAAs and was on only one scoring relay – the 800 free relay that finished 7th. This season, he leads the NCAA in the 100 free (41.21). So goes him, so go the Wolfpack this season. – B.K. 

Hudson Williams has already hit lifetime bests in both the 50 and the 100 back relays. Not only that, but with four men in the top 20 nationally in the 50 free, the Wolfpack relays are starting to look dangerous this year. – R.G.

#6: California Golden Bears -1 (Previous Rank: 5)

Cal is always the hardest team to read in season, but their gigantic freshman class is coming along nicely. It feels like Cal’s 15-year top 2 streak at NCAAs might come to an end this year – unless they have some surprises up their sleeves for the spring semester. – B.K.

#5: Georgia Bulldogs +2 (Previous Rank: 7)

Okay, I think I expected Georgia to be good this year, but I don’t know if I expected them to be this good. They have the country’s fastest 400 medley relay, and Drew Hitchcock has been a pleasant surprise early in the season. – B.K. 

The Bulldogs have come out swinging, and it’s not just the Luca Urlando show. Tomis Koski, Drew Hitchcock, and Ruard Van Renen are all looking sharp, and Eliot Woodburn has already hit a personal best in the 100 breast, and even the 200 free relay is sitting the top ten nationally. – R.G. 

#4: Florida Gators -1 (Previous Rank: 3)

Until Ahmed Hafnaoui swims a meet for Florida, I’ve gotta drop them down the rankings. Ahmed Jaousadi’s 4:14 in the 500 free is a good start to his college career, but with Rex Maurer already going 4:10, there’s a lot of competition in his best events. – B.K. 

#3: Indiana Hoosiers -1 (Previous Rank: 2)

Zalan Sarkany and Luke Ellis are a solid distance duo. Owen McDonald already posted a lifetime-best 200 fly. Diving is always a factor when it comes to the Hoosiers. – A.P.

#2: Arizona State Sun Devils +2 (Previous Rank: 4)

Arizona State is good. Swimulator has them in a dead heat, somehow, with the Texas Longhorns. I think as a good rule of thumb, Bowman’s teams will have slightly bigger taper drops than Behm’s teams, but the Sun Devils have really separated from the rest of the pack vying for #2, and have been good enough to at least draw a little chatter for an upset. – B.K. 

#1: Texas Longhorns — (Previous Rank: 1)

Texas still doesn’t have a lockdown sprinter, but Garrett Gould is trending that way, and the group overall is pretty deep (Calvin Fry, Rafael Fente-Damers). The Longhorns still seem to just have amassed too much talent to be beat this year. – B.K.

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