SEC ‘B’ Finalist Sam Brown Transfers From Missouri To South Carolina
In an interesting development in collegiate swimming, Sam Brown, a two-season Missouri Tiger and Southeastern Conference (SEC) ‘B’ finalist in the 100 backstroke, has announced his decision to transfer to South Carolina to complete his collegiate career.
A Season to Remember
Brown concluded his sophomore season at the 2024 SEC Championships with his best performance in the 100 back, clocking a time of 46.26 seconds to finish 15th overall. Besides, he also put in strong performances in the 200 back (1:42:09) to finish 19th and the 200 free (1:36.46), where he finished 32nd. The backstroke specialist was just over half a second off making the Nationals in the 100 back and two seconds off the cutline in the 200 back.
Brown’s Evolution as a Swimmer
In his two years at Missouri, Brown exhibited tremendous growth, particularly in the backstroke events, which has been evident in his times. For instance, he improved his 100 back timing from 48.63 seconds in his senior year of high school to 46.55 in his freshman year, and further to 46.26 in his sophomore year. A similar progression was recorded in his 200 back event, where he scaled down from 1:47.40 in his senior year of high school to 1:42.58 in his freshman year, and 1:42.09 in his sophomore year.
Transferring to South Carolina
Brown’s transfer to South Carolina, also an SEC school, comes on the back of Missouri and South Carolina finishing 8th and 9th respectively at SECs. Following the SEC’s elimination of its intra-conference transfer rules in 2021, Brown is now eligible to compete immediately. This is in contrast to the previous rule that required a transfer student to “redshirt” for a year, i.e., train with the team but not compete in official matches.
Impact on South Carolina’s Backstroke Group
Brown’s addition to the South Carolina team would strengthen their backstroke group. He will be training alongside South Carolina junior Michael Laitarovsky, who finished 12th in the 100 backstroke at SECs with a time of 46.49 seconds. Kaden Smesko, another backstroke specialist with best times of 46.27 in the 100 back and 1:43.35 in the 200 back, has also announced his transfer to South Carolina.
South Carolina’s mid-distance freestyle team will also benefit from Brown’s inclusion, given that his flat-start 200 freestyle time of 1:36.46 from the past season would rank as the second-fastest on the team.
Swimming Ahead
While South Carolina sent only one swimmer to the 2024 Nationals, Connor Fry, with Brown joining the team, their prospects for future competitions look promising. Building on his previous performances and the opportunity to train with experienced backstrokers, Brown will indeed be one to watch in the upcoming season.
