Former Saint Louis University swimming student-athlete and 2024 Billiken Hall of Fame inductee Ryan McCoy is in his second season as head coach of SLU’s men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams. McCoy was named to the position on Aug. 26, 2025.
Saint Louis achieved impressive progress in McCoy’s first year at the helm. Both teams significantly increased their A-10 Championships point production from 2025; the women almost doubled their total from 72 to 142, their highest tally since 2021, while the men added 116 points and finished with 325, their best score since 2019.
SLU competitors reached 11 championship finals at the A-10 meet compared to two in 2025. Among those Billikens was Brae Sanchez, whose runner-up performance in the men’s 100 breast gave the program its first A-10 individual medal since 2022 and its first individual silver since 2019. The men’s 800 free relay team of Logan Townsend, Kyle Algrim, Tyler Williams and Daniel Jekov claimed a bronze medal, the Bills’ first podium appearance in a relay since 2019. Also at the conference meet, personal bests were set in 58 percent of men’s individual swims and 45 percent of women’s individual swims.
In addition, McCoy’s squad set 10 school records. Algrim led the way, clocking school marks in the 400 IM, 1000 free and 1650 free.
Prior to his return to Saint Louis, McCoy was an assistant at Illinois State during the 2024-25 season. He spent four years as an assistant at Indianapolis after beginning his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Eastern Illinois.
“We are thrilled to announce Ryan McCoy as the new head coach for Billiken swimming and diving, and we welcome him back to lead the young women and men in our program,” SLU Director of Athletics Chris May said upon McCoy’s hiring. “Ryan’s record-setting Billiken career and his successful coaching stops have prepared him to guide our student-athletes to success.”
“I am ecstatic and honored to be named the head men’s and women’s swimming and diving coach for Saint Louis University,” McCoy said. “I would like to thank Chris May, (Deputy Director of Athletics) Dr. Janet Oberle and (Associate Director of Athletics) Annie Reis for the opportunity to lead this great group of young men and women toward the program’s competitive future.
“As an alumnus of the program, the core values of trust, care and commitment to excellence were, and still are, the foundation of success for building a competitive team in the Atlantic 10 Conference,” McCoy said. “The well-being of student-athletes as priority number one is a value that I am happy to have seen firsthand, and I am grateful that I now have the privilege of coaching and shaping Billiken student-athletes toward their bright futures. I cannot wait to get to work and once again call SLU home.”
As the lead sprinters’ coach at Illinois State, McCoy mentored swimmers who set three school records and one who achieved an NCAA “B” qualifying standard.
McCoy’s tenure at NCAA Division II Indianapolis included the first national championship in program history and two conference titles for the men’s team as well as two national runner-up finishes and the first conference crown in 18 years for the women’s team. He helped develop Greyhound swimmers Cedric Buessing and Collins Saliboko into 2024 Paris Olympics qualifiers for their native countries of Germany and Tanzania, respectively.
Eastern Illinois swimmers set eight school records during McCoy’s two seasons on the coaching staff. Prior to his second year, he served two months as interim head coach.
As a student-athlete at Saint Louis, McCoy competed in the 2016 Olympic Trials in the 100 butterfly and 200 freestyle and met the NCAA “B” qualifying standard at least twice in four different events (11 times total). He collected 20 medals (10 individual, 10 relay) in A-10 Championships competition and was a nine-time conference champion (five individual, four relay), capturing at least one gold medal in each of his four seasons. McCoy was the 2015 A-10 Rookie of the Year and earned 10 league awards as either Performer or Rookie of the Week.
The Phoenix, Ariz., native was named Most Valuable Performer of the SLU men’s team in each of his four years. He held 12 school records (eight individual, four relay) at the time of his 2018 graduation; all eight individual and two of the four relay marks stand today.
McCoy earned a Bachelor of Science degree in sports business at Saint Louis and a Master of Business Administration degree in applied management at Eastern Illinois.
