Cal State Bakersfield Hires Eric Bugby as Head Coach
Cal State Bakersfield late last week announced the hiring of Eric Bugby as its director of swimming and diving.
Bugby is trading coasts, having spent the last six seasons as the head coach at Niagara University in New York. He was three times named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, including for both men’s and women’s in 2025. He led the Purple Eagles to women’s MAAC titles in 2002, 2024 and 2025 and the men to the title this year.
Bugby stepped down in April to pursue new opportunities.
“I’m honored and excited to be named the director of men’s and women’s swimming at Cal State Bakersfield,” Bugby said in a university statement. “I want to thank Kyle Conder and Eddie Brewer for the opportunity to develop a championship team and championship culture with the CSUB swimmers and divers. Our values and goals lined up from the first phone call and it’s clear the entire department wants to achieve exceptional results in the classroom, in the pool, on the boards, and with the Bakersfield community. Keep your eyes on this program because the best is yet to come. Go `Runners!”
Bugby led Niagara swimmers to 38 MAAC titles (18 relay, 20 individual), 14 conference records and two NCAA B cuts. The women’s team was seventh in the conference when he took over and turned them into three-time league champs.
Bugby swam at Duquesne University, graduating in 2007. He got his master’s degree at Arizona State in 2009, where he served as a graduate assistant coach for two years.
He went on to become an associate head coach at the United States Military Academy at West Point, an assistant coach at the University of Denver and an associate head coach at Lehigh.
“We are very excited to welcome Eric Bugby to the Roadrunners as our new Head Swimming and Diving Coach,” CSUB director of athletics Kyle Conder said. “Coach Bugby is a proven program builder with a championship mindset, and his track record of elevating teams and developing student-athletes is outstanding. His values align perfectly with our vision to pursue championships and graduate leaders. We are confident that Eric will lead our swimming and diving program to new heights – in the pool, in the classroom, in the community, and beyond.”
