Jordan Smith, a senior and co-captain on the Arizona men’s swimming team, finished in first place three times this weekend in a Wildcats’ win over ASU in Tempe. The Arizona Daily Wildcat caught up with Smith to discuss the team’s championship chances, the ladies’ love of Speedos and who the No. 1 team on campus is.
Daily Wildcat: How did it feel to have such a big individual performance this weekend against ASU?
Jordan Smith: That always feels good, especially when you are going against a rival, and just to be able to score points with first place … it’s always a great feeling.
Considering what a big win, kind of lopsided win, that you guys had over ASU, do you really consider them a legitimate rival in the pool?
Well, ASU, they have been through some tough times recently. The men’s program actually got cut a couple years ago and I’m happy their alumni brought it back, because it means so much to UA swimming to have them in the state, because it’s kind of an enticement for other teams from around the country to come and swim against us ‘cause they can just drive two hours and swim against them too. So I mean, there definitely has been a time when they were beating us at dual meets I heard. Just 10, 20 years ago they were a lot better. So they are kind of rebuilding now, it shifts. So it has been a couple tough years for them, but I’m glad we can still swim against them.
What does it mean to you being a co-captain for this team?
It means a lot. I mean, you come into the program and as a freshman you see these captains and it’s just really helpful to see those guys. So for me to be able to have that kind of influence on the younger guys … it means a lot to me and I take it really seriously.
What would it mean to you if you guys were able to win a second championship in three years?
That would just be awesome. My senior year and we have a huge senior class and all of us have been here for four years. So just to be able to go out with a win, it would be great and we kind of had a disappointing finish last year. So it would kind of be redemption for last year. It would mean a lot.
What are your goals, swim-wise, after college?
I want to keep swimming as long as I can. Probably go for the 2012 Olympic Trials and see how I do there. There is the U.S. National meet this summer and they are selecting some teams there. So if I could get some international experience that would mean a lot. Basically I just want to keep swimming as long as I can, until it’s really responsible for me to do it.
All right, now we are going to lighten it up a bit. So I was reading online that you are from Reno; are you a big Vegas guy?
Actually, I’ve only been to Vegas as a 21 year old maybe a couple times. So I guess I’m not yet, but maybe we will have something to celebrate after NCAAs and make a trip up there. Reno actually has a lot of casinos and stuff too, but I don’t really go to those unless I have friends from out of town.
So do you have a lady friend?
Yeah I do have a girlfriend. She is on the swim team.
OK, so these other questions might not make her a big fan of mine, but I’m going to try for them anyway. I might lose a reader. But let’s pretend that you were a bachelor and if there was a list of the most eligible bachelors at the UA, where do you think you would rank?
Oh, you’re going to get me in trouble. If I was going to rank myself on a bachelor’s list I would have to say No. 1.
OK, at least we have a modest guy here.
(Laughs.)
So let’s be honest, the ladies love the Speedos right?
Yeah I mean, I’ve never come across a girl who didn’t like a man in a Speedo, because you know it shows that you’re confident and comfortable in your skin.
OK, I might have to give that a try sometime. What’s your favorite chick flick? You’ve got to have one, I mean you have a girlfriend. I’m sure you’ve got one.
My favorite chick flick … I’m probably gonna get a lot of crap for this but I think Mean Girls is actually a pretty funny movie.
Hey, that’s not a bad choice. Funny movie. So right now let’s build the perfect girl. Let’s take your girlfriend out of the equation, obviously we might get you in trouble again, but you can just blame it on me. You can combine different parts of different famous women, what is this girl going to look like?
Oh man, well I would have to just say (model) Marisa Miller all-around is pretty much the perfect woman. I don’t know if I could switch out any parts for her.
OK that’s fair enough. What’s the best part of being a swimmer, out of the pool?
That’s a tough one. I don’t have to spend any money on hair products because my hair is so messed up from the sun that it just sticks wherever I put it.
(Laughs) That sounds nice, I wish I knew how that felt. I also read that Gilbert Arenas is your favorite athlete, considering recent events are you still sticking with that pick?
(Laughs) You got that from the media guide, and I filled out that information a couple years ago before he was arrested. I still like him, but these days I’d probably lean more toward maybe a Chris Cooley of the Redskins or maybe an Ovechkin because I’m a D.C. fan.
OK, guess you can’t go Caron Butler anymore. Considering his nickname was Agent Zero, should we really be surprised about what he got in trouble for?
(Laughs) I don’t know it sounds like it was just a dumb move on his part, but yeah I don’t know what to say about that.
Can I make the assumption that no gambling for $20,000 and whipping out guns happens with the UA swim team?
Yeah. I’ve never seen a gun in the locker room and I mean no gambling, maybe for like a sandwich or something.
OK a little lower stakes there. Last question, do me a favor. Let’s start a controversy right here. Is the swim team the best team on campus?
Oh, I mean I’ll definitely say that. I’ve got no problem making that statement. We are No. 1 right now in the nation, so I mean who else can say that?
