Roman Willets Named Cal Swimming Volunteer Assistant Coach

California men’s swimming & diving head coach Dave Durden named Roman Willets as his program’s volunteer assistant coach on Friday. The move rounds out Cal’s coaching staff for the 2020-21 academic year.

Willets replaces Kevin Rapien, who left Cal in late July when he accepted a full-time position as an assistant coach with the USC men’s and women’s swimming & diving programs.

“We’ve been fortunate over the last 12 months to have had a great volunteer coach in Kevin (Rapien) and I’m thrilled to see him earn a full-time position on Jeremy Kipp’s staff at USC,” Durden said. “With that loss, we’re excited to welcome Roman into our program. He has such a great collection of experiences with his pedigree, his background and the coaches he’s swam for and worked with. I’m looking forward to having him not only impact our college program, but our post-grad group as we prepare for the 2020-21 season, U.S. Olympic Trials and the Olympic Games in Tokyo.”

Prior to his arrival at Cal, Willets was already involved in the Bay Area aquatics scene for four-plus years. He currently coaches at the Ladera Oaks Swim Club (Portola Valley, Calif.), helping lead the senior and pre-senior level training group alongside head coach Nick Wooters with a focus on the dryland program for athletes ages 11-18. From 2015-18, Willets was the Director of Competitive Swimming for the Bay Club Company, where he led the development of a six-site, 400-plus swimmer age group program throughout the Bay Area.

During the 2019-20 academic year, Willets additionally served as a triathlon volunteer assistant coach at the University of San Francisco, where he helped Dons head coach Gina Kehr build up the program’s dryland and in-water training program.

Before moving to the Bay Area, Willets spent two years (2014-15) working with Bob Bowman and Erik Posegay at North Baltimore Aquatic Club (NBAC), where he helped train the High Performance Group and Olympians Michael Phelps and Allison Schmitt. Willets also had the opportunity to work with and learn from Keenan Robinson, the U.S. National Team Director of Sports Medicine and Science, while with NBAC, helping Robinson implement an age group and high school strength & conditioning program.

“I’m incredibly honored to have the opportunity to work with the Cal men’s swimming & diving program for the 2020-21 season,” Willets said. “The program fosters an unparalleled culture that reflects both Dave and Chase’s leadership and the character of the men on the team. Dave and Chase are not only two of the best coaches in swimming, but two of the strongest leaders in the sport and that’s extremely humbling to have the opportunity to work and learn under their mentorship.”

A four-year letter winner (2010-13) in swimming for the University of Michigan, Willets served as team captain of the Wolverines’ 2013 Big Ten and NCAA Championship squad. He collected a NCAA All-American Honorable Mention in 2010 and All-Big Ten Second Team honors in 2012, both for the 400 freestyle relay. Willets’ collegiate coach at Michigan was Mike Bottom, former Cal men’s co-head coach (1997-08).

Willets graduated from Michigan in 2014 with a B.A. in Secondary Education and is expected to complete his M.S. in Kinesiology at Cal Baptist University in fall 2021.

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ROMAN WILLETS FILE

» Hometown: Whitehouse, Ohio

» Birthday: January 6, 1991

» Alma Mater: Michigan, 2014 (B.A., Secondary Education)

» Twitter: @RomanWillets

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Dan DiSalle

3 years ago

Way to go Roman !