SMU Athletics

Eddie Sinnott – Men’s Swimming Head Coach 1989-2019

Eddie Sinnott was a 16-time conference Coach of the Year and led the Mustangs to 16 league crowns as head coach at his alma mater from 1989-2019. Under Sinnott, SMU recorded 11 NCAA top-15 finishes, 80 individual All-America honors and 59 relay honors and 288 conference championships. Sinnott coached 11 student-athletes who competed in seven different Olympic Games, including gold medalists Ryan Berube (SMU HOF 2015) and Lars Frolander (SMU HOF 2013). Under Sinnott, both Berube and Frolander were named NCAA Swimmer of the Year. Sinnott served on the Olympic International Organizing Committee from 1984-92, and served United States Swimming at international events in 1987, 1993 and 2008. He was also the head coach for Haiti at the 1996 Olympic Games. Beyond the college teams, Sinnott helped teach in the SMU swim lesson program for most of his 40 years on the Hilltop, and was a leader in the Dallas swimming community. In 2019, he was selected by his peers for the National Collegiate Scholastic Trophy, which is presented to the coach who has made the greatest contribution to swimming as a competitive sport, and as a healthful, recreational activity in the province of undergraduate and scholastic education. Sinnott was also instrumental in fundraising for the Robson & Lindley Aquatics Center and Barr-McMillion Natatorium. A four-year letterwinner at SMU from 1973-76, Sinnott was an All-American in 1973 and 1974 and the SWC champion in the 400 IM in 1973.

A Mustang Through And Through - by Sioux Sinnott, Steve Collins & Jim Stillson
"He had this amazing ability to relate to his kids & encourage them to exceed any limitations they put on themselves...It didn't matter if they were the last guy on the team struggling to make the squad or the next future Olympian." - Jim Stillson



2024 Hall of Fame ceremony - Eddie Sinnott starts at 1:12:40