The Major Shifts in College Swimming Over the Last 2 Years and How it Affects Recruiting and Scholarships

The two huge structural changes: revenue sharing + roster caps

The most consequential development for every NCAA sport (including swimming & diving) is the House v. NCAA settlement. In June 2025, a federal judge granted final approval to a deal that does two things: (1) pays athletes back damages and (2) allows schools to share athletics revenue directly with athletes up to a national cap (projected to start around $20.5 million per school in 2025–26, rising over time). These payments are in addition to scholarships, cost of attendance, and Alston-type academic benefits.

To make revenue sharing workable, Division I governance removed sport-by-sport scholarship limits for schools that operate under the settlement’s framework and replaced them with roster limits. In other words, instead of saying “men’s swimming gets 9.9 equivalency scholarships,” schools can now award athletics aid to any number of rostered athletes—so long as they stay within the roster cap—and within their institution’s overall budget. 

For swimming specifically, the emerging standard at the high-major level is a 30-athlete roster cap for both men’s and women’s teams beginning in 2025–26. Conferences retain the ability to set stricter caps; notably, the SEC has set 22 for men. Expect most Power-conference programs to fall somewhere between those ranges, with 30 as the national ceiling unless a league opts lower.

There’s one more wrinkle to know: in summer 2025 schools also had to identify certain “Designated Student-Athletes”—a settlement mechanism that, among other effects, intersects with portal timing and how athletes may (temporarily) sit above caps at transfer. It’s a narrow administrative detail, but it influenced some transfer decisions this summer. 

What this means in practice: Scholarships are no longer squeezed by a 9.9/14.0 ceiling at schools following the settlement rules; they’re constrained by (a) the roster cap, (b) the school’s willingness to fund aid under that cap, and (c) how the institution allocates its new revenue-sharing pool across sports. For swimmers, that’s a profound shift in leverage and strategy. 

Conference realignment reshaped the map (and recruiting footprints)

Over the same period, conference realignment scrambled who races whom and where. The Pac-12’s dissolution and the migration of brands like Cal and Stanford into new homes created unfamiliar conference lineups and travel patterns, but top-end performance remained elite. For recruits, the realignment changed travel mileage, meet calendars, and exposure to certain championship meets—all factors families should weigh alongside academics and fit. 

Recruiting impact: some programs’ geographic recruiting radiuses expanded (e.g., ACC footprints reaching farther west), while others recalibrated their international mix to maximize points in new conference scoring contexts (relays, diving depth, distance vs. sprint bias). The net result is more volatility: rosters turn over more quickly, and the “traditional” pipelines aren’t as predictable as they were even two recruiting classes ago.

The transfer portal matured and tightened

The portal is now a permanent factor rather than a novelty. Windows matter: for swimming & diving, sport-specific timing dictates when athletes can enter and sign, and 2025 featured a distinct July window connected to settlement implementation and designated-athlete processes. While exact dates vary by year and NCAA updates, the bottom line for recruits is to assume coaches will hold a few scholarships (or roster spots) in reserve for proven college performers emerging from the portal late in the cycle.

SwimSwam’s tracking this spring illustrated just how active the men’s and women’s portals were for 2024–25, with additional movement expected as roster caps kick in for 2025–26. If you’re a high-school senior targeting late spring decisions, you are now competing not only with your class but also with rising sophomores and juniors looking to transfer.

How recruiting strategy is changing for coaches

1) Fewer walk-ons; more “useful 30/22.”With hard caps, coaches must justify every roster slot. Preferred walk-on classes will shrink. Versatility (relay utility, multiple NCAA scoring paths) matters more than ever. Expect more interest in athletes who can cover a second stroke or add medley/relays rather than single-event specialists.

2) Data-driven risk management.Because schools can allocate aid more flexibly under the cap, staffs are modeling “performance ROI”: splits that translate to relay points, underwaters, and durability across sessions. Late-bloomer seniors with steep improvement curves may still win offers, but coaches will demand clearer trend lines (long-course and short-course proof, consistent taper results) before committing a precious roster spot. (This is an inference based on the new caps interacting with long-standing recruiting practices.)

3) Budget-tiered offers.With revenue sharing layered on top of scholarships, some departments will prioritize “headline” sports in the new pay model. Others will spread resources to maintain Olympic sports competitiveness. Swimming staffs are responding by mixing packages—partial athletics aid plus academic/need-based aid—and by staging offers across the cycle (early money to cornerstones, spring money to fill relay needs, and summer money for portal targets). 

4) International balance.Roster caps don’t curb international recruiting; they sharpen it. Many staffs will still earmark a few slots for proven international scorers who can step in immediately, then backfill domestic depth from the portal or late high-school commits. Travel and admissions timelines now weigh heavier in offer timing because a missed arrival under a cap is costly.

What’s different for prospects and families

Scholarship math is changing.Under the old system, D-I men’s teams split 9.9 equivalencies across 25–35 swimmers, and women split 14.0 across similar rosters. Under the new regime (at schools following the settlement rules), coaches can award aid to anyone on the roster—but the number of rostered athletes is capped and the school’s total athletics-aid budget is finite. Practically, that can mean more athletes receiving some aid, but with a wider range of offer sizes. Don’t assume the disappearance of a sport-specific cap equals a windfall; assume packages will be individualized and strategically sized.

Rosters are tighter; timelines are earlier.Because every spot counts, staffs are pushing earlier for commits who solve clear scoring needs (especially relay legs). Juniors with NCAA-projectable relay splits will continue to receive priority. Seniors who rise late can still land, but patience cuts both ways: a program may wait on a portal target rather than “use” its 29th or 30th slot prematurely. 

The portal is your shadow competitor.Even if you’re not transferring, portal dynamics affect you. If a program expects to add a proven 19.2/42.4 sprinter in May, that may delay or reduce your offer as a high-school recruit. Keep warm relationships with multiple schools and ask candidly how many spots are reserved for portal additions.

Conference context matters more.A 22-man SEC cap versus a 30-person cap elsewhere fundamentally changes how many freshmen a staff can carry, how many redshirts it can absorb, and how many developmental projects it can take. When you compare offers, compare the conference caps and the program’s recent scholarship/roster patterns. 

Actionable guidance for the next 12 months

1. Build a “cap-aware” target list. Note each program’s conference and any announced roster number. If you’re a men’s recruit eyeing the SEC, understand that 22 is a different math problem than 30; SEC men’s teams will be extremely selective with walk-ons and single-specialty prospects. 

   
   

2. Lead with relay value and versatility. In your outreach, highlight 50/100/200 combinations (free and stroke), reliable start/turn data, and relay takeoff proficiency. Attach a short clip deck with side-angle underwaters and relay exchanges from championship meets.

   
   

3. Ask the right scholarship questions. Since sport-specific caps are gone in the settlement framework, ask: “How do you typically allocate aid under the roster cap? What’s the path to increases after year one? How does academic or need-based aid integrate?” You’re trying to learn whether you’ll be one of, say, 15–18 athletes on partials—or one of five on larger packages—within a 30-person roster.

   
   

4. Know the calendar (recruiting + portal). Keep an eye on sport-specific dead periods and signing timelines, and be aware that portal windows can temporarily dominate coaches’ bandwidth. Your best bet: get your film, transcript, test scores (if any), and top-5 event history in coaches’ hands before those windows open.

   
   

5. Plan for travel and academics in realigned conferences. If your “dream” program now competes across three time zones, discuss missed-class policies, tutoring, and exam accommodations. That’s not just quality of life; it directly impacts whether you’ll thrive enough to improve year-over-year in a capped roster environment. 

   
   

Bottom line

From 2023 to 2025, college swimming moved from a world defined by equivalency scholarship caps and loose roster sizes to one governed by revenue-sharing budgets and hard roster caps. Scholarships didn’t vanish—they became more flexible but also more competitive, because every roster slot is now a premium asset. Layer on conference realignment and a more sophisticated transfer market, and you’ve got a faster, more fluid recruiting ecosystem.

For athletes and families, success in the new era comes down to clarity and fit: know each program’s roster math, show how you score points (especially on relays), and stack multiple good-fit options early so you’re not boxed out by late portal waves. The opportunities are absolutely still there—just packaged differently than they were two years ago.

Many find the recruiting process overwhelming and time consuming and would like help navigating the journey.  College Swimming Consulting can help make the process smooth and easy.  Visit collegeswimmingconsulting.com for more information!