For senior swimmer Ed Walsh, his time in the Orange and White has been defined by a culture clash.
A native of London, the lanky six-foot, 165-pound sprinter will end his UT career next week with the NCAA Championships as a different man than the one who first arrived in 2009.
“I’m a lot more mature,” Walsh admitted. “I was more of an individual when I first came here.”
Coming from the English style of competitive swimming, which places more emphasis on the individual performance and less on the team mentality, Walsh’s individualistic nature was immediately challenged and shaped by his new teammates.
“Throughout the past when I was a freshman, we had great leaders on this team,” Walsh said. “They showed me the tradition and the importance of the team and that opened up my eyes a bit. They taught me so much that I know that I need to teach the rest of the guys so much.”
From there, this All-American and four-time NCAA Championship-qualifier developed not only as a swimmer — a process which involved raising the bar on his morning performances and preparedness for later events in big meets like the NCAA Championships — but also as a person. This growth culminated in his appointment to the position of captain this year.
“It shocked me to be made captain. It was probably one of the highest moments in my life,” Walsh said. “To have these guys look up to me as an example has been the best experience of my life so far.”
While Walsh’s future is currently uncertain, he is planning on weighing the merits of continuing his swimming career professionally with head coach Matt Kredich after the season against getting a graduate degree (he applied for graduate school at UT in kinesiology). He is not worried about what the immediate future will hold at the NCAA Championship.
“For me, there’s no tomorrow,” Walsh said. “This is my last race as a Tennessee Vol in the last competition. But I’ve done so many great things in my career here, that it’s going to be a great meet no matter what.”
With a busy slate of individual events and relays, including a Day One schedule of six races, Kredich is certain, however, that his seniors, Walsh included, will appreciate the experience of their last races.
“What I’ve seen with seniors in the past is that usually they stop playing games with themselves, and they realize that this is just another meet,” Kredich said. “So they don’t have to wonder if they belong. But at the same time it’s something special for them in their last competition. So I want to see them bring a lot of joy with them.”
Ultimately, Walsh plans on swimming the best races he can to end his career in style and continue the lessons he was taught.
“I’d want people to say that I’ve left a mark behind on Tennessee swimming and that I won’t be forgotten,” he said.
And while Walsh hopes to leave a mark at UT, he admits that Tennessee made a mark on him.
“I’m completely Southern now. I’m talking gravy and biscuit Southern,” Walsh said with a laugh. “… I’ve developed a family out here.”
But, Walsh, who stubbornly proclaims that Butch Jones is an “American football” coach and that he’d rather go see Oasis over Kenny Chesney, at times proves the adage that you can take the Englishman out of England, but you can’t take the England out of the Englishman.
“Fish and chips, you can’t take that away,” Walsh said. “I will always love fish and chips.”
