Athletes supporting athletes: Men’s swim and dive fuels basketball success

The Miami University RedHawks men’s basketball team is having the season of a lifetime and one unique element has been integral to their success: the Miami’s men’s swim and dive team. The team shows up to most home games, sporting their speedos and caps… and nothing else.

The point is to both support the RedHawks and distract for the opposing team, as they strip down to the swim suits after halftime so they’re directly in the line of sight of the opposing team as the players shoot their free throws. After all, it’s kind of hard to ignore.

Beyond their unusual choice of attire, the athletes will go as far as lifting their teammates to “swim” through the air. It doesn’t get more distracting than that. Following the spectacle Miami started pulling ahead in the game against University of Massachusetts (UMass), holding the Minutemen to four points in the first few minutes after the speedos appeared.

“If I was shooting free throws and I saw 15 guys in speedos, I would have to second guess,” senior guard Peter Suder said. “It would mess me up in the head for sure.”

In the second half, UMass was less than 50% accurate in both field goals and 3-point attempts. Not only does the swim and dive team distract the opposing team, but it livens up the student section in its entirety.

“I feel like it brings a special type of energy to the school, because we never really see that,” freshman guard Trey Perry said. “With this season we're having, that just brings another element that takes us over the top [in] those types of games.”

Saying the RedHawks are on a roll is an understatement of the greatest distinction. As of Feb. 9, they are the last undefeated team in the country with a 24-0 record and ranked No. 23 in the AP Poll, their first national ranking since 1999.

Miami’s success under head coach Travis Steele is marked by more than just the rankings and wins as it averages the most points per game in all of college basketball (92.7), surpassing multiple programs with historic success in previous seasons.

The energy can be felt the second you walk into Millett Hall: It’s reminiscent of a Power Five program. In their last home game against Northern Illinois University, the RedHawks broke the attendance record with 10,640 fans packing Millett.

“I was a little nervous doing it the first time, but the crowd liked it, and it was just really fun doing it with everyone,” freshman diver Paul Hong said. “I feel like the momentum changed, and then we just started bringing the hype even more.”

Hong said he hopes that by him and his teammates showing up in their speedos, they can continue to create a collaborative, supportive community within Miami athletics.

The athletics program consists of under 1,000 athletes. At a school of around 18,000 undergraduates, it’s meaningful to create relationships between athletes of all sports, supporting one another at meets, games and matches.

Enjoy what you're reading?
Signup for our newsletter

That's the sentiment that fueled the idea and continues to propel the swim and dive team to attend basketball games when their own meet schedule allows it. The team enjoys creating the energy that fuels the men’s basketball players, helping them win from the stands.

Other schools’ swim teams, including St. Louis University and Fordham University, have also gotten in on what has become a trend, showing up at their schools’ basketball games in swim suits, too. The swim and dive teammates give all credit to the basketball players, noting their success and energy is what made them want to do it in the first place.

“I feel like the basketball team itself gave us the energy, and we're helping them carry it along,” sophomore swimmer Owen Hoban said. “I would say that their season so far has been fantastic; We just want to enjoy it too.”

The basketball team intends to keep the trend of inter-athletic support alive, and show up to a swim meet before the season ends.

“I told them we would return the favor and go to one of their meets,” Steele said. “We wouldn't be wearing speedos, though.”

rosente2@miamioh.edu