On Friday, sources confirmed to SwimSwam that 2022 NCAA All-American Anthony Grimm would return to his home state and transfer to swim at the University of Virginia. This aligns with what Grimm’s high school club team, MAKO Swimming, posted on their Instagram story on Thurdsay.
“Congrats to MAKO @anthony_grimm on his commitment to @uvaswimdive!” MAKO swimming wrote.
Around three weeks prior, Grimm had entered the NCAA transfer portal. This entrance came after he had initially announced his retirement from competitive swimming in October 2022 after swimming one season with the University of Texas. That means that Grimm will have three more years of eligibility remaining with Virginia.
As the #1-ranked recruit in the high school class of 2021, Grimm is an extremely versatile sprinter, being proficient in all four strokes. In his time at Texas, he helped the Longhorns to a second-place finish in the 200 medley relay at the 2022 NCAA Championships, swimming the backstroke leg. He also placed 30th in the 50 free (19.37) and 19th in the 100 back (45.44) at that meet, setting both times in both events.
2022 NCAAs was also the last time that Grimm competed in an official meet.
Grimm’s Best Times:
50 free: 19.37
100 free: 44.00
50 back: 20.55
100 back: 45.44
100 breast: 52.51
100 fly: 46.09
200 IM: 1:45.84
At Virginia, Grimm will be a key asset to the Cavaliers’ medley relays, as well as their 200 free relay. His 50 back best time is already faster than Matt Brownstead‘s team record (20.76), while his 100 back time would rank second on Virginia’s roster behind Brownstead (who has a PB of 45.33). Grimm would also be a great replacement from graduating senior and 19.21 50 freestyle August Lamb (if he doesn’t take a fifth year) on the 200 free relay.
The Texas-to-Virginia transfer trope isn’t just exclusive to Grimm. Last season, Tim Connery transferred to Virginia after swimming one year for Texas, citing a desire to be closer to home as his reason for the move. In fact, Connery and Grimm had roomed together at Texas during their freshman year.