William & Mary head swimming coach
Nate Kellogg announced the hiring of two assistant coaches today, completing his coaching staff in preparation for the 2021-22 campaign. Experienced coaches
Colby Kubat and
Mike Williams will join the Tribe, responsible for helping with all in-practice, recruiting, and administrative duties for running W&M's nationally-regarded program.
"We knew in our coaching search that we were looking for specific traits to complement our existing staff," said Kellogg. "Colby and Mike both have extensive experience coaching in the club ranks, at the forefront of the emerging waves of talent in this country, and both also have experience coaching at the highest levels of the NCAA. I'm confident that those combinations of training athletes at the Division I level and familiarity on the recruiting front will work to help quickly elevate W&M swimming back to the top of the CAA, and beyond."
Kubat comes to Williamsburg after spending the last year as a volunteer assistant on the staff at Division I powerhouse Tennessee. With the Vols, he assisted in all aspects of the program, including designing and running training plans for all of the collegiate and professional swim groups, recruiting, scouting opponents, and running the team's social media accounts. Prior to his time in Knoxville, Kubat spent six years as the head age group coach at Minnetonka Swim Club in Minnesota. While there, he developed, implemented, and led the training plans for the team that saw Minnetonka rise in the national club rankings from 182nd to 67th over the course of his tenure.
During his time at Minnetonka, Kubat also was the lead sprint coach at St. Olaf College from 2015-17. In the 2016-17 campaign, Kubat's athletes broke four school records and earned two NCAA qualifications. He also was an assistant coach at St. Thomas for the 2014-15 school year, helping the Tommies to the conference title on the men's side and a runner-up finish with the women. His athletes won 10 individual MIAC titles and four conference relay championships, and had multiple NCAA qualifiers and finalists. Kubat was an outstanding swimmer for St. Olaf during his undergrad career, winning 19 conference titles and earning nine All-American honors. Upon graduation, he held shares of the program records in both the 400 medley and 400 free relays, and helped St. Olaf to win three MIAC Championships. Kubat graduated from St. Olaf in 2014 with his degree in economics.
Williams is no stranger to W&M and the Colonial Athletic Association, swimming and coaching at UNCW before embarking on a very successful club coaching career. Most recently, Williams spent the last year in Williamsburg coaching with the Coast Guard Blue Dolphins club at all levels and age groups. He also coached with the Virginia Gators swim club as a Senior and National-level coach, mentoring athletes from the later stages of high school and in college. Williams' recruited athletes went to a number of regional and national powers, including but not limited to W&M, UNCW, Virginia Tech, Virginia, N.C. State, and Texas.
Prior to making the move up to Virginia, Williams spent two years as the head swim coach at the Cape Fear Aquatic Club in North Carolina from 2016-2018. During his tenure, Williams had three athletes qualify for the YMCA National Championships for the first time in club history, and his charges set nearly 100 club all-time records. He also helped more than triple the club size, from 30 members to 94 in the first year as head coach, as well as managing club-wide fundraising events and budgets. Williams got his start in coaching as an age-group coach with the Waves of Wilmington (2013-14) and at the Marlins of Raleigh (2014-15), instructing beginning swimmers from ages 8-12 and assisting with the leadership of older age groups as well.
Williams also has two years of coaching experience in the Division I ranks. He was an assistant coach at his alma mater, UNCW, during the 2013-14 season, helping lead the Seahawks to their 13th consecutive CAA title. He helped coach and administer all aspects of the training and recruiting efforts for UNCW, and had a specific emphasis in helping coach the sprinters who won three conference titles, two of them relays. After that year, Williams moved on to N.C. State, where he was a volunteer assistant for the 2014-15 seasons. In Raleigh, he helped specifically with the distance group while also assisting in the administrative and recruiting efforts for the Wolfpack. That year, N.C. State won the ACC Men's Championship for the first time in over 20 years and took eighth nationally, its highest finish in nearly 40 years.
Williams graduated from UNCW in 2013 with his degree in exercise science. He helped the Seahawks win the CAA men's swimming championship all four years of his undergrad career, and was an eight-time All-CAA honoree. Williams swam on four championship relays over his final three years, including both the 200 free and 400 medley relays in 2011, the 400 free relay in 2012, and the 400 medley relay as a senior in 2013. He captained the squad in both 2012 & 2013, and also won the team Seahawk Award those years as well.
