Troy Tillman has committed to swim for the University of Tennessee.
The Notre Dame senior, a two-time All-American, will sign papers with the Vols this afternoon at the high school.
"I liked the coaches, but Tennessee probably has the nicest pool in the country, it's a great program and it's close to home," Tillman said.
He picked the Volunteers over Florida State, Indiana and Virginia Tech.
"I went to Virginia Tech, and then Tennessee was my second trip. I canceled visits to FSU and Indiana because I knew UT was where I wanted to be," he said.
Tillman is a 50- and 100-meter freestyle specialist and is likely to complete in the sprints and on relays for the Vols.
"As I get older and faster, I think I'll be doing the sprints and some of the relays," he said. "A lot of times, though, people go to college thinking they'll be doing a specific event and then they wind up doing something totally different."
Tillman's best times are 51.95 seconds in the 100-meter freestyle, 23.72 in the 50 free and 22.60 in the 50 from a relay start.
He has been swimming competitively since he was 6 years old, starting at Cumberland Youth Foundation. He's a Baylor Swim Club member apart from his school team.
Tillman is a member of the National Honor Society and performs community service through Notre Dame's leadership program.
Ward Gossett is an assistant sports editor and writer for the Times Free Press. Ward has a long history in Chattanooga journalism. He actually wrote a bylined story for the Chattanooga News-Free Press as a third-grader. He Began working part-time there in 1968 and was hired full time in 1970. Ward now covers high school athletics, primarily football, wrestling and baseball and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling. Over a 40-year career, he has covered ...
Or login with:
New Account