Cleveland State head men's and women's swimming & diving coach Hannah Burandt announced the hiring of Ben Colley, a former member of the U.S. national team, as an assistant coach in July 2019.

Colley helped the Vikings to numerous successes in his first season at the helm. He helped both the men’s and women’s programs to runner-up showings at the 2020 Horizon League Championships.

On the women’s side, Colley helped the Vikings to the best showing by a CSU squad at the league meet in seven years, in terms of both placement and point total. The Vikings had tied for third in the preseason poll, but CSU not only surged ahead of the team it was tied with but also leapt past the preseason runner-up when it was all said and done.

The CSU men won six titles at the league championships with Colley’s assistance, the program’s second-best mark over the past seven years. Timothy Kubacki and Dominic Poletta both won a pair of individual HL titles while the latter subsequently won two individual titles at the National Invitational Championship.

Colley helped the Vikings as they broke school records in five swimming events, three men’s and two women’s, in his first season. Combining the men’s and women’s teams, CSU surpassed NCAA qualifying marks in five swimming events and posted 89 swims during the season that rewrote the all-time top-10 lists at CSU.

"I feel lucky to announce Ben as the first addition as we look to surround our student-athletes with a 'dream team' staff," Burandt said at the time of his hiring. "He brings an eagerness to learn, a desire to make an impact and a personality that our entire program is going to enjoy. I am confident his dedication to coaching, insights from his own swimming experiences and integrity will help lead our program to new horizons."

Colley served as an assistant coach for the men's and women's programs at SUNY Cortland while working on his Master's degree in the two years prior to joining CSU. He helped as Red Dragon swimmers broke eight school records during the 2018-19 season, including Kelly Davey earning a pair of All-America honors at the NCAA Championships. The men's and women's programs each finished second and third in their nine-team conference in Colley’s two seasons.

Colley had a highly decorated athletic career. He was named to the U.S. national team in 2014 after his performance in the 200-meter butterfly (1:56.54) at the Phillips 66 National Championships.

Colley competed collegiately for the University of North Carolina and was a four-time NCAA Championships qualifier for the Tar Heels. He competed in four distinct individual events in his NCAA Championships career, and four distinct relay events, while earning a trio of All-America honors.

Colley still holds UNC's school record in the 200 butterfly (1:42.19) and also swam on relays that still own school records in the 200 free relay, the 400 free relay and the 400 medley relay. Colley also held the 200 freestyle school record at the time of his graduation.

A native of Williamsburg, Va., Colley graduated from North Carolina with a degree in sport administration. He is expected to earn a Master's degree in sport management from SUNY Cortland this fall.