College sports is an ever-changing landscape that has shown no signs of stopping. ASU swim and dive is no different.
Last year, ASU agreed to leave the Pac 12 for the revamped Big 12. The Sun Devils' final act as members of the Pac 12 was winning their first national championship in men's swim and dive.
That excitement was short-lived. Just days after ASU won the national title, Texas announced former Sun Devil head coach Bob Bowman as its new program head before former ASU swimmer and Olympic gold medalist Léon Marchand announced his plans to turn pro.
There was a light at the end of the tunnel when associate head coach Herbie Behm was introduced as the new ASU head coach following Bowman's departure. Behm has been praised as one of the brightest young minds in swimming by his predecessor and many others.
Behm was put into a tough situation lacking many pieces from last year's team, but he has approached the challenge with confidence.
"Our freshman class we've had now is one of the best we've ever had," Behm said. "We've got a bunch of other people who are stepping up and swimming really fast."
Senior freestyle swimmer Daniel Matheson also praised the newcomers on the team for helping rebuild the Sun Devils' championship squad.
"We see it with our freshmen that have just gone on to campus, they understand the goal," Matheson said. "You see them working their a---- off in practice, which as a senior is nice to see that everyone is devoted to this one goal."
Before lifting any more trophies, the No. 6 Sun Devils must swim past a gauntlet of a schedule that includes six teams ranked in the CSCAA Top 25. For one, Matheson feels more than ready for the challenge and said they love to race fast teams.
Headlining the schedule are former conference foes No. 1 California and No. 7 Stanford along with a tri-meet that includes No. 3 Texas, No. 5 NC State and No. 14 Virginia.
Hard work behind the scenes is required to prepare for a schedule of that difficulty. Junior freestyle utility swimmer Jonny Kulow praised Behm's demanding practice style that can feel more competitive than meets.
"Our practices are wild," Kulow said. "Every day at practice, everyone is going head to head and everybody's bringing the energy, so we'll be ready."
After the regular schedule and Big 12 Championships, the Sun Devils' focus will turn to the NCAA Championships. The chances of a repeat in any sport are low but Kulow is confident.
"I don't think repeating is out of the picture at all, but it’s not going to be a walk in the park either,” Kulow said. “Everybody's got to grind and got to trust in the guy next to them that they're doing the exact same thing.”
On the other hand, Coach Behm is trying to stay focused on the present. He thinks it is important to not look too far ahead and stay focused on how his team can improve little by little.
The next date on his calendar is the team's first meet against UNLV on Oct. 4 in Tempe.
"I think the main goal is to not think about (NCAA Championships), and not worry about the result at the end of the year," Behm said. "If we stand around talking about what we're going to do in 180 days, we're just going to be preparing ourselves for a future moment that never comes."
Edited by Jack Barron, Sophia Ramirez and Madeline Schmitke.
Reach the reporter at jkmccar2@asu.edu and follow @jackmccarthyasu on X.
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Jack is a junior studying sports journalism with a minor in business. This is his first semester with The State Press. He has also worked at his high school paper.
