The #1 overall recruit in the men’s class of 2012, Gray Umbach, has verbally committed to swim for Stanford next fall, according to the Twitter page for his club team in the Woodlands, Texas (North Houston).
Umbach’s lofty ranking is due partially to his huge versatility. He ranks among the top-10 in the class in at least 7 different events, headlined by his butterflies of 47.99 and 1:46.75. He’s also a very good backstroker (48.55 in the 100) and freestyler (20.9/44.7).
What you get at the end of the day is a phenomenal IM’er, with bests of 1:47.59 in the 200 and 3:54.06 in the 400, both done as a sophomore. If you wanted to characterize Umbach, he’s probably best described as a David Nolan/Jonathan Edwards type, though he leans slightly more towards the butterfly events than backstroke (the other two are reversed).
It will be great to see Umbach and Edwards joined as teammates. The two had a ton of epic battles in high school (Umbach’s College Park and Edwards’ Cy Creek sit only about a 30-minute drive away from each other, which is a relatively short hop for the vast North Houston suburbs.) Those two had some truly epic battles in high school, including in the 200 IM final last year where Edwards dropped a hammer of a closing leg to pull away to a victory after Umbach led the prelims heats. They also squared off in the backstroke final, where it was again a strong close by Edwards that gave him the title.
The year before, as a sophomore, Umbach took two state crowns, in the 200 IM and the 100 fly, without Edwards in the field (though he did top current Cal Bear Seth Stubblefield in the 100 fly. As a freshman, Umbach was again runner-up twice to another Stanford Cardinal – Matthew Thompson in the 100 back and 200 IM. Edwards was also in both of those finals. Methinks that Stanford coach Skip Kenney has found a recruiting trend that he likes a lot.
I live and coach in Houston, and so can hear the pulse around the town. As a freshman, there was a ton of excitement about Umbach and his potential, but lately the general tone has been one of concern that he might have peaked early, and that his progression has slowed significantly (not my opinion, just the ear-to-the-ground).
Still, there probably isn’t a more ideal group of training partners in the country for his specific talents than the one at Stanford
Agree Braden, Umbach seems to have peaked at 14 and hasn’t improved much since then, during a time when most other guys his age are really starting to drop time. I remember when he broke Phelps’ NAG record in the 200im and that he seemed remarkably matured for a 14 year old. While I don’t think he’ll be another Maverick Smalley, I feel his collegiate success, even for his freshman year, won’t be as notable as some of the guys under him, such as Jacob Pebley and Chase Kalisz. Still, Stanford’s probably got the best male class this year, with Umbach, Kremer, and Thompson.
Your prediction held true.
Pretty sure everyone saw this one coming.
Amazing group there. They’ll be a force for sure!
I am so excited to have Umbach swim at Stanford along with Nolan, Edwards and Thompson!!!