Alumni Weekend Brings Back '79-80 Team
October 03, 2014 10:29 AM | General
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| Havlik |
Each season, WVU swimming and diving takes a look back at its alumni, and provides background information on current members of the squad. This is the first of a season-long series of features.
John Havlik always wanted to coach.
Well, that is until he joined the United States Navy.
The former WVU swimmer and member of the 1979-80 undefeated Mountaineers will be back in town this weekend along with his teammates from nearly four decades ago to reunite and celebrate their accomplishments.
The alumni weekend features multiple festivities, including recognition on the field during the WVU-Kansas football game on Saturday afternoon.
Havlik came to Morgantown for the first time in 1976, competing as a member of the swimming and diving team from 1976-80.
“West Virginia just felt like home. It was a great atmosphere and a great environment for me,” Havlik explained. “I wasn't heavily recruited, but being able to come to a program and help it develop to a nationally recognized program was fulfilling.
“Everything about West Virginia was great - I felt very comfortable from the moment I visited through the whole time I was there. I often say if I hadn't left West Virginia when I did, I'd still be living there.”
But why did Havlik leave town?
After serving as a captain on the 1979-80 team, setting multiple pool and school records, Havlik finished his degree while helping former WVU coach Kevin Gilson by serving as an assistant on the coaching staff.
“I wanted to be a swim coach – that's what I wanted to do,” Havlik said.
When a full-time opening at South Carolina came about, it was an opportunity he couldn’t let pass.
“I was at South Carolina for a year, then the assistant swimming coach position at the United States Naval Academy opened up. I applied for that and was selected,” Havlik said.
This is where his career path took a turn.
“I ended up having to join the Navy. It was a special program the Navy had when they were trying to bring in people with certain skills. I ended up having to go into boot camp,” Havlik said. “We had guaranteed orders, once we completed boot camp, to go to the Naval Academy and be a coach in whichever sport we were recruited for.”
So Havlik went through 16 weeks of the grueling physical and mental demands to successfully complete a boot camp. He was successful, to no surprise, and ultimately achieved his goal by joining the Navy coaching staff.
He enjoyed coaching just as he suspected. However, he also began to see the different career paths the Navy had to offer – with the Navy SEALs being one of them.
“I heard about the SEALs and did some research. I did the application process, took all of the tests and ended up leaving the Academy to go into the SEALs, and that's what I've been doing for the last 30 years since I left the academy,” Havlik said.
To many, the Navy SEALs are a superior bunch with skills only a few possess. For Havlik, though, his experience as a collegiate swimmer at West Virginia University ultimately prepared him for the challenges he would face.
“The swimming requirements weren't that tough to me because I was very comfortable in the water and could swim fairly well. It made it easier, no doubt,” Havlik explained. “The big thing that swimming offered and what I took away from college was the training and the day-to-day grind of swimming. Having to work hard and the mental aspect of college swimming really carried over into SEAL training. The hardest part of field training was the day-to-day grind of getting up very early and the long days, but I was prepared for this.”
Havlik and his 1979-80 Mountaineers were no slouches either. The squad went 9-0, recording its first-ever win over their rivals about 75 miles to the north – the Pitt Panthers. Despite all Havlik has experienced over the past 30 years, that win is a moment he will never forget.
“The one memory I always take away is my senior year when we beat Pitt at home. Havlik said. “When I need some motivation now or need to get the juices flowing, I think back to that meet. There's just something about beating Pitt.”
This weekend’s events are something Havlik, now a Tampa, Florida, resident, has looked forward to since it was initially planned.
“The majority of the folks I'll see this weekend I haven't seen since 1980,” he admitted. “Back then, we didn't have Facebook and all that stuff to keep in touch. Like everything, people go off on their different chosen professions. Once I got into the military, I did a lot of traveling. I got focused on that aspect of my life and lost touch of the majority of the folks.”
After serving his country for more than 30 years, the West Virginia alum still is extremely thankful for his experiences in Morgantown. It’s an opportunity that opened the doors to a world of choices.
“I'm very fortunate to be a West Virginia graduate. They afforded me the opportunity to swim and gave me and a couple others the opportunity, who weren't highly recruited,” Havlik said. “Coach Gilson gave us an avenue to develop, and we took advantage of it. I'm happy to be a Mountaineer, and I'm glad to see where the program is going.”
Havlik and his fellow alums will be cheering on the Mountaineers at their annual Gold-Blue Meet this Friday, as the 2014-15 Mountaineers kickoff their season at the WVU Natatorium at 3 p.m.
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