when ray bussard was hired in 1968 as head coach for the vols swimming & diving team the team hadn't competed at the ncaa level since 1959 and had not ever won a team sec championship. in only his second year as head coach bussard won the school's first sec title for men's swimming & diving and would go on to compete in the ncaa tournament. throughout the 1970s tennessee owned the 400-freestyle relay at the sec championships winning it for ten straight years. during that ten year span tennessee earned five straight 800-freestyle relay titles and won the 400 medley crown nine out of 11 times. in 1978 bussard would accomplish the biggest goal for any team by winning the 1978 ncaa championship. at the start of the championship meet the vols jumped out to a 24-point lead on the first day of competition and would continue on winning the title. the title was not only a first for a team from the southeastern conference but also a first for any team in the south. when bussard retired in 1988 he finished with a 252-20 overall record and a .926 winning percentage making him the winningest swimming and diving coach in tennessee history. he left the school having earned ncaa coach of the year in 1972 and 1978, as well as sec coach of the year in 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, and 1978. in 2008 bussard was inducted in the american swimming coaches association's hall of fame.