Rob Catloth Hometown: Lawrence, Kan. Last College: Kansas Position: Head Coach

Rob Catloth was named the Kansas rowing coach when the team was founded in 1995 and remains the only varsity rowing coach in KU history. Now entering his 16th season, Catloth will look to build upon a strong foundation set by the program's recent successes and usher in a new age of Kansas rowing with a completed boathouse on the Kansas River.

Catloth has coached KU to numerous milestones in the program's history, including an Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championship, three consecutive seasons being ranked and the team's first ever Top-20 national ranking. In 2009, the Varsity Eight set a school record for 2000 meters with a time of 6:26.2. Other milestones include victories over in-state rival Kansas State in each of the first five years of the Kansas Cup as well as a program-record 10 first place finishes in 2005.

Catloth has also seen two of his rowers receive the prestigious Big 12 Prentice Gault Postgraduate Scholarship in the past four seasons and Risa Petty was named a COSIDA Academic All-American in 2000.

Catloth has developed a philosophy that creates strong team unity and produces focused, competitive student-athletes. The rowing program is also structured to promote a close interaction between freshmen and upperclassmen, as Catloth and his staff believe that freshmen mentoring expedites the transition to university life for these young women.

Catloth's success at Kansas was recognized nationally in the summer of 2000 when he was selected with former University of Pennsylvania coach Barb Kirch to lead the U.S. freshmen and pre-elite camp at the ARCO Olympic Training Center. Catloth and Kirch led the Nations Cup Four to a gold medal (the 23-and-under world championship) in Copenhagen, Denmark, in July 2000.

Catloth, a Lawrence native, graduated from Kansas in 1985 with a bachelor's degree. He and his wife, Jennifer, reside in Baldwin City, Kan. They have three children, Grant and Olivia, who are both undergraduates at KU, and a one-year-old named Van.

In a season of firsts, Kansas started the 2008-09 season with the dedication of the Kansas Rowing Boathouse on February 28 on the snowy banks of the Kansas River. The snowy weather persisted on into March causing the cancellation of the Jayhawks' first trip to face the Oklahoma Sooners in Oklahoma City. The weather rebounded the next weekend as Kansas hosted Texas at Wyandotte County Lake taking the top spot in the Varsity Four. Kansas State came to Wyandotte County Lake the following weekend for the Kansas Cup and the Varsity Four dominated again, but a late charge from Kansas State in the Varsity Eight gave the Cup to the Wildcats. The Jayhawks then traveled to the SIRAs in Tennessee and all five boats qualified for the grand finals with the Varsity Four and Second Varsity Eight both taking third in their respective finals. The following weekend the Jayhawks traveled to Minnesota to face the 20th ranked Gophers in St. Paul. Kansas won the Varsity Four race. On May 2 Kansas hosted the inaugural Big 12 Championship at Wyandotte County Lake. Kansas was in second place most of the day, but a restart in the Varsity Eight race hurt the Jayhawks and the team finished third.

Catloth guided Kansas to another successful season in 2006-07 despite experiencing extreme weather conditions. The winter brought a prolonged freeze of the Kansas River, and in the spring, strong winds and high-water levels forced the Jayhawks to cancel a regatta with Tulsa and Drake. Nevertheless, Kansas narrowed the gap with Big 12 leader Texas at the Big 12 Invitational in Kansas City. The Jayhawks finished in second place, four points ahead of in-state rival Kansas State.

During the spring 2006 season, Catloth led a young Kansas team to steady improvement that culminated with solid performances in the difficult South-Central Regional. The out-of-water highlight of the spring occurred when Catloth learned that the University of Kansas student body had voted to help pay for a new facility near the Jayhawks' rowing practice facility.

In the spring of 2005, Catloth led his Jayhawks to 10 first-place finishes. At Kansas' only home regatta, Senior Day against Tulsa and Drake, the Jayhawks placed first in all four varsity races under Catloth. He also led the Varsity Four crew to a first-place finish in the Grand Finals at the Knecht Cup in Camden, N.J.

During the 2004 season, Catloth coached the Jayhawks to three first-place finishes at the Knecht Cup. In addition, the Jayhawks won the Kansas Cup against in-state rival Kansas State. At the South-Central Regionals, his team finished eighth in team points and the Varsity Eight also came in eighth.

During the 2001 season, Catloth guided the Jayhawks to their third-straight national ranking, finishing the season at No. 23. As the first and only varsity KU rowing coach, Catloth has coached his team to numerous milestones in the program's history, including the team's first national ranking and an Intercollegiate Rowing Association championship.