Early 70’s. Ever hear of a guy named Mark Spitz? I met his roommate at a member guest in Florida. This guy was the top ranked backstroke in the US his freshman year at IU. By the time he graduated, he was the 5th best on the team. That’s how dominant IU was. They were the Alabama of swimming.

IU Men's swimming and diving
The Hoosiers won six straight NCAA national championships from 1968–1973, giving them the fifth-most in NCAA history. Their 24 Big Ten crowns, including every Big Ten championship from 1961–1985, rank second in the conference's 90-year history. Indiana has produced 80 individual swimming and diving national champions, over 191 Big Ten swimming champions, 25 conference diving champions and has won 45 Big Ten relay events. The 80 national champions ranks third among Big Ten schools while the individual Big Ten diving, relay and individual swimming crowns all rank second among all conference schools. The success goes well beyond the Big Ten and the NCAA Championship as is evidenced by the eight straight U.S. National Diving Championships that Indiana divers have won.

Under former coaches James Counsilman and Hobie Billingsley, the men's swimming and diving program won 140 consecutive dual meets, 20 consecutive Big Ten titles and an NCAA Division I record six consecutive NCAA Championships (1968–1973), most of which were won under swimming great Mark Spitz. A writer for Sports Illustrated in the early 1970s said, "a good case can be made for the 1971 Indiana swimming team being the best college team ever—in any sport."[19][20]