'I believe in what you can do': Ex-UM coach tells MSU board to reinstate swimming

Last month, Mike Bottom retired as a Michigan Wolverine.

On Friday, he made a passionate public pitch to become a Michigan State Spartan.

Bottom, the longtime head coach of Michigan swimming and diving who won a national championship with the Wolverines, addressed the Michigan State Board of Trustees on Friday as the university considers reinstating the men's and women's swimming and diving program that was eliminated early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bottom previously told The News he has officially joined the advocacy group that has spent years trying to reinstate the programs at Michigan State. He also told The News he'd be willing to coach the program if it's brought back, at least in the short term as the university seeks a long-term solution.

The university has set an Oct. 1 deadline for the advocacy group, Battle for Spartan Swim and Dive, to raise $26.5 million to cover five years of program operating expenses ($6.5 million) and upgrades for the pool that is in the plans for a new student recreation and wellness center ($20 million).

"I believe that what you're doing here, building a great facility and I think building the greatest facility in Michigan, what you can do here is change the sport," Bottom told the Board of Trustees during public comment at Friday's meeting. "We can do it in a different way, because you have the opportunity to do something fresh.

"As a recruiter in the past, what I've done is look at potential. As a coach in the past, what I've done is step on campuses and foster belief and potential to make it happen.

"I am here crossing the boundaries, because I believe in Michigan State. I believe in what you can do here."

Bottom, 67, coached at Michigan for 15 seasons before officially retiring last month. Previously, he coached at Cal Berkeley, his alma mater Southern Cal, and Auburn. Each program has a national championship pedigree in swimming, and he said Friday that Michigan State, should it reinstate, has that potential, too.

Michigan State announced in October 2020, amid the COVID-19 financial crush, that it was eliminating Michigan State men's swimming and diving. Then-athletic director Bill Beekman cited the financials as a big reason for the decision, plus the lack of infrastructure. Court depositions, though, showed Beekman was having discussions regarding program elimination before the pandemic.

Battle for Spartan Swim and Dive, made up of program alums and parents of Michigan State swimmers, have led the persistent charge for reinstatement ever since. Michigan State's decision led to lawsuits, one of which earned several Michigan State female swimmers a cash settlement and promises from the university that it would get in line with Title IX legislation which demands schools offer equal opportunities for men's and women's sports based on the makeup of the overall student population.

Former Michigan State president Samuel Stanley wasn't in favor of reinstatement, but the advocacy group has found a more-willing partner in current interim president Teresa Woodruff.

Should Michigan State reinstate, the next season of swimming and diving would be the school's 100th.

"I'm ready to commit to come here and help build a program just like the programs I've stepped into in the program," Bottom said. "That's what we do as coaches."

Bottom flew in for the MSU Board of Trustees meeting from Dallas, where he was attending a conference, to use his three minutes of speaking time. Also speaking at Friday's meeting was Samantha Barany, executive director for the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America.

Battle for Spartan Swim and Dive has had speakers at nearly every MSU Board of Trustees meeting since the decision was made to eliminate the programs.

Battle for Spartan Swim and Dive, which now has the university sending out fundraising emails on its behalf, has commitments of about $6 million toward the $26.5-million goal.

The advocacy group is hopeful that whatever it raises by the Oct. 1 deadline will be seen as a good faith effort by the university toward reinstatement. The $20 million for the pool upgrades is a top-level assessment. Advocates for the swimming and diving program believe the pool upgrades can be sufficient for local and national competitions without spending top dollar.

"Please hear me when I say you can and will be competitive regardless of what bells and whistles you bring in this facility. You can compete for a national title," Barany told the MSU Board of Trustees on Friday morning. "We will employ all of our resources to help you launch this program."

The advocacy group offered Woodruff an opportunity to meet with Bottom and Barany before Friday's board meeting, but as of midweek, there was no response from the university.

Multiple members of the advocacy group met with athletic director Alan Haller on Aug. 22, and he told them "he has a plan ready for reinstatement," said Tom Munley, a member of Battle for Spartan Swim and Dive.

Bottom recognized the unique nature of a longtime Wolverine going to bat for the Spartans.

"Thank you for not throwing anything at me," he said Friday, to chuckles.

"I'm gonna say, go … green."

The effort for reinstatement also got a public endorsement from MSU's student body government Friday.

Michigan State officially broke ground Thursday on the new 293,000-square-foot student recreation and wellness center, which will be funded in large part by a student tax that is set to increase to $340 a year. The cost of the project is projected to be at least $200 million. It is projected to be completed by February 2026.

tpaul@detroitnews.com

Twitter/X: @tonypaul1984