For 12 years, Kevin Murphy has been the head coach of Carroll’s swimming and diving teams, and during this time, he has established one of the most successful programs in any sport in Texas.
In February, Carroll’s boys hoisted the state trophy for the seventh consecutive year, while the girls took fourth in their seventh straight state appearance. Regardless of individual speed and stature, Murphy remains focused on every one of his kids creating a team atmosphere that for seven years and counting has been second to none.
We sat down with Murphy to learn more about him, his time at Carroll and what keeps him at the top of his craft.
Q: How long have you been coaching?
A: This is my 38th year coaching swimming, 33rd year as a head coach and 12th year at Carroll. I started in Tulsa, Oklahoma, went to Moore, Oklahoma, for 16 years, then to Bryan, Texas, back to Jenks, Oklahoma, and then came to Carroll.
Q: Was your background in swimming or coaching first?
A: Swimming. I started swimming at the age of seven and swam competitively until I was 21. I went to Oklahoma State where I was a senior national qualifier and all-Big 8 swimmer, but after three years I quit and went into the Navy. I spent a year active and five years in the reserves before I started coaching as a USA club coach for three or four years.
Q: When did you know you wanted to be a coach?
A: I felt like a lot of my swimming career was left undone and part of it was my fault. So in coaching I found I had energy and knowledge I wanted to impart to the kids. It became very self-satisfying to be able to share and watch others be successful. And it was a big motivator for me to finish college myself.
Q: What do you enjoy most about coaching?
A: Seeing kids get better. It’s fun to chase goals, but the most fun is that if everyone gets faster, something good is going to happen. All of my coaching in Oklahoma, we didn’t have as much quality material because it was just not as popular there. But I learned a lot abut how all kids matter—not just the fast ones. For me, it’s as much more about watching a new kid become a medium swimmer and so on. We really believe in a team concept, and honestly most kids want to do more for their teammates than themselves.
Q: What makes Carroll a great place to coach?
A: There are a number of different variables. For one, it’s a great pool and we don’t have to share it with any other high schools. And between the Southlake Barracudas, the Timarron Tiger Sharks, the Southlake Sting Rays and the North Texas Nadadores, there are so many raw materials. I just have to plant seeds and encourage them to keep swimming in high school. We find some gems, and we’ve had enough success that even some people move here to be a part of the program. We don’t recruit, but they see the success of the school and of the swim program and want to be a part of it.
Q: How long do you think you’ll continue coaching?
A: I would like to go 10 more years and be here at Southlake. I’m chasing some goals, but I’m not going to get into those. Every year is a new year, a new plan and new challenges, and I’m still enjoying it a ton.
Q: What would you consider your biggest accomplishment?
A: The most gratifying aspect is that there are a lot of different types of kids. The ones who are super successful seldom come back to say hi. And the ones who should have listened or worked harder or felt I paid attention to them when they weren’t the best … they come back to say hi. That’s very satisfying knowing you are touching a life independent of how fast they swim.
Q: What is the funniest thing you can recall happening in the pool?
A: One Friday we used an 18-foot water tee to help drain the pool while there was a football game going on nearby. The tee broke and water started flooding right to the teachers’ parking lot for the football game. We had to go over to maintenance and weld it back together. So, when I got here to Carroll, they asked me what I knew about pump rooms. I told them absolutely nothing. And I haven’t been in that pump room once.