By Braden Keith on SwimSwam
The University of Texas men will carry 30 swimmers into the 2025-2026 collegiate swimming & diving season, in spite of an SEC-mandated cap of 22 swimmers for men’s programs beginning next season in light of the House settlement.
- See the full roster here (some of the classes are not correct).
Head coach Bob Bowman confirmed that the SEC will also allow Designated Student Athletes referred to in the settlement, namely those who were cut from rosters as a result of the House vs. NCAA roster-trimming.
While the House settlement requires roster to be reduced to 30 athletes for men and 30 athletes for women, the SEC independently further reduced rosters to 22 on the men’s side. After probing from the judge in the House settlement, the two sides agreed to a carveout that would allow athletes who were cut from rosters to be exempt from the new roster limits until they exhausted their eligibility, even if they transferred to a new school.
While DSA designations are not public, this does allow for a bit of a loophole. Namely, a coach could choose to ‘cut’ even star athletes with a wink, and then bring those athletes back as Designated Student Athletes. While it’s unclear which of Texas’ 30-man roster are Designated Student Athletes, by definition, some portion of their 22 returning athletes must be logged as DSAs.
DSAs were named on July 5 at the discretion of each school. After the settlement, the transfer portal was opened for DSAs to get a second chance at transferring.
The upcoming Texas roster includes Alec Enyeart, who didn’t compete for the Longhorns last season. After not racing from April 2024 until December 2024, and then competing back home in his native Kansas City, Enyeart had a huge bounceback performance at the USA Swimming National Championships.
There he finished 6th in the 400 free in a best time of 3:48.46, earning a spot on the World University Games team. He finished 7th in Germany at that meet. Enyeart last competed for Texas at the 2024 Big 12 Championships during Eddie Reese’s last season as a head coach. He raced at the 2023 NCAA Championships in the 500 free and 1650 free, finishing 13th in the latter to score four points.
The Texas men won the 2025 NCAA Swimming & Diving championship and return more points from that roster than any other team in the country for next season.
Read the full story on SwimSwam: Texas Men Will Carry 30 Swimmers & Divers Into 2025-2026 Season Thanks to DSA Loophole
