David Marsh: Coaching from the Inside Out

Photo courtesy of Todd Van Emst,
Auburn University.

If everybody loves a winner, then Auburn University Head Swim Coach David Marsh may just be the best-loved coach in all of college swimming. The statistics are nothing short of amazing—most recently coaching both the men's and women's teams to NCAA Division I Swimming & Diving Championship titles for the second year in a row.

To what does Marsh attribute his staggering success? "Most importantly, talented athletes," he says. "I have to deflect all my accomplishments to God's work in my life, an excellent hardworking staff, and the facilities and equipment that Auburn provides for the swimming program."

A native of Miami, Florida, and graduate of Auburn, Marsh says there's no question that having state-of-the-art equipment gives the Tigers an edge in competition. "For example, CTS's relay judging platforms allow our athletes to practice their reaction skills and relay exchanges with accurate feedback," he says. "The light on the front is new to our facility."

Marsh especially appreciates the training uses of CTS's Championship Start System, with its underwater speaker and wireless microphone.

"The portable system has allowed us to communicate underwater and most substantially, our athletes are able to practice proper pushoffs," he said. 

Before the underwater speaker and wireless microphone was introduced into the Tigers' program, swimmers had to line up with their heads out of the water and listen for the start signal. With the underwater speaker, swimmers can practice proper body alignment and don't have to scramble to get into proper departure position.

Pictured from left to right: Mark Gangloff,
Pat Calhoun, Justin Caron and David Marsh.
Photo courtesy of Todd Van Emst, Auburn University.

The role of state-of-the-art equipment extends outside the pool as well. One of Marsh's training strategies includes acclimating his athletes to competition conditions. "In the weight room, when our athletes do circuit training we don't use a whistle anymore to signal station changes," he says. "We use the CTS start system in the weight room so that the swimmers learn to react off the beeper sound and become more comfortable with it."

Not surprisingly, Auburn attracts high-quality, championship-caliber athletes thanks in part to the high-tech training equipment and facilities. Put that together with a successful comprehensive swimming program and a knowledgeable staff, and Auburn swimmers are "given all they need to allow them to strive for excellence in all areas of their athletic development," says Marsh. "We take pride in developing swimmers at all levels—all the way up to our blue-chip superstars like Maggie Bowen." Marsh coached Bowen to six individual NCAA titles (three 200 and three 400 IM titles), an American, US Open and NCAA record in the 200-yard IM and a world championship in the 200-meter IM.

Marsh's training techniques are also noteworthy, a philosophy that Marsh calls "coaching from the inside out." "Each year we begin with general training, working to develop skills with a variety of techniques," he says. "Each season we want our swimmers to reach a higher standard in multiple categories: aerobic training base, strength, body/weight ratio, flexibility, mental toughness, their knowledge of the sport and race strategy. As the season goes on, training becomes more specific to each swimmer's event."

The Tigers' usual training routine includes mid-to-high stress training on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, with aerobic training and technique on Tuesday and Thursday, which allows recovery time and makes the sport more enjoyable for the swimmers.

And what would Coach Marsh say to new coaches? "Put away your stop watch," he says. "Get in the water and coach from there. Learn the movements of the great swimmers of the past." More importantly, Marsh says, "Work with the person—not the swimmer. Swimming involves multiple personalities all coming with different talents at a young age. Many of our sport's best ultimate swimmers were not great swimmers as young children." Marsh notes that he didn't start swimming until he was 15 years old and just seven years later he was sixth in the world in his event. "Don't give up on young people, and don't just concentrate on the talented ones," he says.

It's no coincidence that Marsh is a winner. He walks his talk. Marsh believes that swimming isn't just swimming—it's a springboard to living a quality life. "Swimming, if taught properly, will teach more than fast times," he says, "it teaches a foundational way to live in this world, through goal setting and optimistic attitudes."

Click here to read more about David Marsh.