Frank Erwin Awards
[If you know of someone you feel is deserving of the Frank Erwin Award, a nomination form can be downloaded here.]
In 1975 Tex Robertson created the Frank Erwin Award to signify outstanding individual achievement and contribution to Longhorn swimming and diving. The first recipient was, of course, Frank Erwin himself.
Frank Erwin was born in Waxahachie, Texas, in 1920. He enrolled in UT the same year that Tex Robertson became the Longhorn swimming coach, 1937. They then both joined the Navy in 1942, interrupting their respective education and coaching careers, to serve in World War II. Erwin returned to UT to earn his law degree in 1948.
Although politics was important to his life, Erwin’s foremost passion was the University of Texas. From 1963 to 1975 he sat on the UT Board of Regents; he was chairman from 1966-1971. His strong leadership and great accomplishments in every corner of the campus made his contribution to swimming just one of many good deeds at UT.
As president of the Longhorn Club, Erwin gave swimming’s very first scholarship to Skippy Browning after he was denied an athletic scholarship. He was instrumental in the hiring of Pat Patterson and was the force behind the building of the world’s finest swimming and diving facility. To top it all, he used his influence to get UT to go along with Patterson’s recommendation to obtain super coaches Paul Bergen and Eddie Reese and to get the athletics department to fully fund both programs.
Any swimmer or diver to ever wet a foot in the Texas Swimming Center should remember this man and his contribution to the nation’s best collegiate swim programs.
Frank Erwin Award Recipients
(Search by name or year; scroll to the right to see all recipients)| Year | Recipients | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 |  Jeff Commings |  Garrett Weber Gale |  Kristina Stinson Straface |  Cheryl Ridall |  Mary Yarrison Hahn |  Jon Alter | |||
| 2019 |  Rip Esselstyn |  Annabelle Cripps |  Bryan Jones |  Claire Sanders McCall |  Terri Seipel Hinojosa | ||||
| 2018 |  Annette Cowley-Nel |  Lance Gordon |  Tine Tollan |  Ann Drolsom Worthington |  David & Edwina Thomas | ||||
| 2017 |  Julie Cooper Bliemel |  Lisa Hallee |  Scott Mactier |  Kristi Busico Metzger |  John and Susie Naftanel | ||||
| 2016 |  Nancy Marter Carter |  Melanie Hauser |  Tim Carter |  Aaron Piersol |  Brandon Gardner | ||||
| 2015 |  Ian Crocker |  Brendan Hansen |  Jodi Wilson Kuhn |  Charles Logan |  Emily Sullivan Lyden |  Tobie Smith | |||
| 2014 |  Lydia Morrow Chase |  Jeanne Doolan Cunningham |  Tommy Hannan |  Chris Plonsky |  Will Reeves |  Vanessa Richey Said |  Matt Ulrickson | ||
| 2013 |  Jodi Else Horvath |  Scott Goldblatt |  Mary Juarez |  Ricky May |  Jim Spillane |  Sherry Wigginton Beall | |||
| 2012 |  Troy Dumais |  Lee Jamieson |  Colleen Lanne Cox |  Sheila Rice |  Leroy Sutherland |  Jenni Wagner Stark | |||
| 2011 |  Sam Kendricks |  Laura Wilkinson |  Jaime Rauch |  Vera Ilyina |  Carlos Arena |  Nate Dusing | |||
| 2010 |  Jim Henry |  Christian Styren |  April Kubik |  Jeff Thibault |  Terrianne McGuirk Kingsburry |  Jon Vegard | |||
| 2009 |  Doug Gjertsen |  Matt Stahlman |  Chuck and Sherel Knesel |  Dorsey Tierney-Walker |  Jerry Olson | ||||
| 2008 |  Dee Hollar |  Lisa Kelsey Shepard |  Neil Walker |  Becca Culver Scoggin |  Stuart Smith | ||||
| 2007 |  M.F. Johnson |  BJ Bedford |  Robin Carter |  Sharon Smith-Nunez |  Eric Finical |  Sam Sparks | |||
| 2006 |  Katy Arris Wilson |  Fred Machell |  Chris Jacobs |  Louis Manganello |  John Kenny |  Pat Robertson | |||
| 2005 |  Erin Bieter Hodge |  Andrea Hayes Dickson |  Adam Werth |  Lee Ann Fetter-Witt |  John Henry |  Andy Gill |  Carl Quaintance | ||
| 2004 |  Hans Dersch |  Kirk Stackle |  Kelly Jenkins Madden |  Tracey McFarlane Mirande |  Haila Kauffman | ||||
| 2003 |  Kenny Armstrong |  Doug Dickinson |  Patty Overmeyer Armstrong |  Nathan Breazeale |  John Maher |  Charlie Craven |  Phillip Nenon | ||
| 2002 |  Brian Cisna |  David McWilliams |  John C. Smith |  Ted Doyle |  Elinor Reese |  Greg Thompson |  Whitney Hedgepeth |  Jason Rhodes | |
| 2001 |  Doug Elenz |  Shaun Jordan |  Bobby Brodnax |  Guy Hagstette |  Spencer Martin |  Josh Davis |  Suzanne Halliburton |  Patty Sabo |  Keith Bell |
| 2000 |  Jim Boon |  Betsy Mitchell |  Don Watson |  Jann Girard |  Bill Robertson |  David Young | Robert McLellan |  Dotson Smith | |
| 1999 |  Beery Boggs Sullivan |  Bill Little |  Roger Tolar |  Tiffany Cohan Adams |  Debbie Reisen Hurwitz |  Peyton Townsend |  Diane Girard Johns |  Kelly Rives | |
| 1998 | Clarence Cockrell |  Joe Lajoie | Weldon Smith |  William Cunningham |  Gary Langedon |  Tori Trees Smith |  Milton Davis |  Kim Rhodenbough Macklin | |
| 1997 |  Jody Condradt |  Nick Nevid |  Ken Flaherty | Harry Williams | Charles Lucas |  Mark Yancey | |||
| 1996 | Joe Stanley Irvine |  Marvin Rich |  Dick Worrell |  Lee Jamail |  Bill Stapleton |  Kim Linehan |  Wynant Wilson | ||
| 1995 |  Billy Brink |  Darrell Fick |  Tony Scott |  Jane Dillard Hanger |  Bob Rachner |  De Loss Dodds |  Matt Scoggin | ||
| 1994 |  Carol Borgmann Robertson |  Darrell Royal |  Chuck Worrell |  Rick Cary | Ed Seidel |  Bill Johnson |  Jim Willerson | ||
| 1993 |  Steve Boss |  Hyle Karback |  Eddie Johnson |  Jack Tolar |  Clay Britt |  William Paulus | |||
| 1992 |  Rollin Baker |  Dana Curtis |  Frank Campbell |  Jeff Heller |  Denise Christenson |  Kris Kirchner | |||
| 1991 |  Johnny Crawford |  Scott Spann |  Kris Kubik |  Joan Pennington | |||||
| 1990 |  Doug Duwe |  Jill Sterkel |  Jane Patterson |  Jake Pickle | |||||
| 1989 |  Bob Rochs |  Donna Lopiano | |||||||
| 1988 |  Adolph Kiefer |  Mike Brown | |||||||
| 1987 |  Eddie Reese |  Richard Quick | |||||||
| 1986 |  Eddie Gilbert | ||||||||
| 1985 |  Joe Gilbert | ||||||||
| 1984 |  Wally Pryor | ||||||||
| 1983 |  Wally Hoffrichter | ||||||||
| 1982 |  Pat Patterson | ||||||||
| 1981 |  Hank Chapman | ||||||||
| 1980 |  Tex Robertson | ||||||||
| 1979 |  Paul Bergen | ||||||||
| 1978 |  Shorty Alderson |  Ed Barlow | |||||||
| 1977 | Lex Acker | ||||||||
| 1976 |  Allan Shivers | ||||||||
| 1975 |  Frank Erwin | ||||||||