West Virginia Hires Alum Michael Walker as Associate Head Coach
New West Virginia coach Brent MacDonald on Monday hired former Mountaineer Michael Walker as an associate head coach.
Walker swam in Morgantown from 2005-09, a team captain in the 2007-08 season. He helped lead the Mountaineers to the Big East championship in 2007 and was a three-time Big East champ in the 200 back and 400 IM in 2008-09. He finished 11th in the 400 IM at NCAAs in 2009 and qualified for U.S. Olympic Trials in 2008.
“I am extremely humbled to represent the Mountaineers once again,” Walker said in a university statement. “This place is truly home to me and my family. I am incredibly grateful to Athletics Director Wren Baker, coach MacDonald, and the entire athletic department leadership for this opportunity.”
Walker was an assistant coach at Texas A&M for the 2023-24 season. From 2018-23, he was an assistant coach and then associate head coach at Delaware.
Walker’s coaching career began in 2010 with five seasons at the Bolles School in Jacksonville, serving as an assistant coach for Sergio Lopez, Walker’s head coach at West Virginia. He was the head coach of the Guatemalan national team for two years, including at the 2015 Pan Am Games and 2015 World Championships. Walker was the head coach of Fairmont Area Swim Team (FAST) in West Virginia and an assistant coach at Fairmount State from 2016-18.
Walker is one of the first hires for MacDonald, hired last month as head coach.
“It took me very little time after being named head coach at WVU to realize that Michael would be my main target for associate head coach,” MacDonald said. “It’s not very often a candidate can pair a diverse coaching background with being an alum and native son of West Virginia. He and I are aligned on the potential we see for this program, and it will be great working alongside him.”
