University of Georgia Athletics
Quick Chat: Andrew Abruzzo
October 29, 2021 | Swimming & Diving, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
As Georgia swimmer Andrew Abruzzo sat down in the bleachers at Gabrielsen Natatorium for a Quick Chat this week, Olympic gold medalist Chase Kalisz was about 30 feet away doing a workout. Georgia's is an elite program, of course, and living legends do walk among us.
Kalisz and former Bulldog teammate and training partner Jay Litherland took gold and silver in the 400-meter individual medley this summer at the Tokyo Olympics. During our Chat, Abruzzo, a senior from the historic town of Plymouth Meeting, Pa., talked about watching so many Bulldogs perform well in the Games. He also talked about being in school with his sister, Mia, a freshman on the women's team, his favorite Halloween candy, and much more.
Here's some of what he had to say:
Frierson: As a collegiate swimmer, what is it like having an Olympic gold medalist around every day and training in the same pool that you do? Is it daily inspiration?
Abruzzo: Yeah, definitely. One, they're super fun; they keep it light, which is very nice because when it gets very hard and intense they're there to keep it light, and they have such good perspectives on things because they've done it all at this point. They have really good advice and a really good perspective on it, which I think helps keep everyone grounded but also motivated.
Frierson: What was it like watching the Olympics and seeing Chase, Jay and so many former Bulldogs earn medals and do so well?
Abruzzo: It was really crazy. You know when you're little and you watch the Olympics on TV, you want the Americans to win. But now, it's like, these are people I know personally so it made me get so much more into it.
If you think about how exciting it is for the average person to watch it, think about how it was for the whole Georgia community, especially after the 400 IM. Hali (Flickinger) took the bronze for the women and then Chase won and Jay got second — it was so cool. You go on social media that night and I think every person had something up about Georgia. It was such a cool feeling to be like, wow, we're all a part of such a great culture that has phenomenal athletes representing it.
Frierson: Tell me about home, about Plymouth Meeting. Looking it up on Wikipedia, it was founded in 1686, so it's obviously a place with a lot of history.
Abruzzo: Yes, definitely. My high school (Germantown Academy) was the oldest nonsectarian day school in the country. It was founded in 1759, so even before the United States. Everywhere at home has some tradition, and Valley Forge is 15 minutes from my house.
It's funny when I talk to people from other places because I didn't realize how much tradition we have and how deep it was and all the culturally-significant stuff that was around until I wasn't in it every day.
Frierson: I know Jack Bauerle is always looking for someone to talk Sixers, Eagles, Flyers and Phillies, so are you one of the guys that he goes to talk Philly sports?
Abruzzo: I love Philly pro sports. I don't know the stats like some people do, I'm a little bit more of a casual watcher, but we can talk Philly sports. My family owns bars, sports bars, so I always knew when the teams are doing well because it's a huge thing for us and my dad will have all sorts of things happening down at the bars.
When the Eagles won the Super Bowl, school was canceled so we could go to the parade. It was a huge thing. It's always fun when the games are on because we can talk about it.
Frierson: What is it like having your sister here with you now?
Abruzzo: Oh, it's awesome. My parents love it. It's definitely nice to have a taste of home; so many people on the team are from Georgia, it's like 65% are kids from Georgia, so it's nice to have someone that knows more of the personal stuff — and to make it my sister just makes it that much better. She's fun and she's really fit in with the team well.
My parents were able to come down last weekend (for the meets against North Carolina and South Carolina) and bring my two other little sisters. It's nice that they didn't have to go to two different colleges and we're both here.
Frierson: Have you enjoyed showing her your UGA and your Athens and showing her all of the things that have helped make this place special to you?
Abruzzo: Yeah, totally. I remember her first couple of weeks, I'd walk her all around campus. She got tours and stuff, but you forget. I was able to show her a lot of different things and where to go for this and that.
It's a little weird for me because I sometimes think that I just got there. I think it's helped her a lot too, just having a familiar face around. I think it's worked out nicely because in a lot of ways we're similar but we're also very different, so she's able to have her own identity but also the way has already been cleared a little bit.
Frierson: Now for the really important questions. First, what is your favorite Halloween candy?
Abruzzo: Probably Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. I really like Reese's, those are definitely my favorite candy. M&M's are probably a close second but definitely Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.
Frierson: And finally, do you have a favorite Halloween costume that you've worn?
Abruzzo: I've had a couple that I've enjoyed. I really like Halloween and last year my girlfriend and I were Sharkboy and Lavagirl, and that was fun. That was a movie from everyone my age's childhood.
This year, we're going as Freddie and Daphne from "Scooby-Doo," which is a fun one. When I was little, I was probably only 4 or 5 and Mia was a baby, I was the Big Bad Wolf and she was Little Red Riding Hood. My parents loved that one because it was a siblings costume.
I like the ones that I've worn more recently. It's been fun as I've been a little bit older to do more creative stuff.
Frierson: Is there one on your list that you're going to get to one of these years?
Abruzzo: I feel like I'm doing a lot of things in college because I know that I can't really dress up for too much longer. On Saturday, in weights (training), everyone is showing up in costume and we'll have a little contest there. I'm a senior and I don't have much time left to do Halloween, so I definitely think that recently I've been going a little bit harder than normal.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Staff Writer
As Georgia swimmer Andrew Abruzzo sat down in the bleachers at Gabrielsen Natatorium for a Quick Chat this week, Olympic gold medalist Chase Kalisz was about 30 feet away doing a workout. Georgia's is an elite program, of course, and living legends do walk among us.
Kalisz and former Bulldog teammate and training partner Jay Litherland took gold and silver in the 400-meter individual medley this summer at the Tokyo Olympics. During our Chat, Abruzzo, a senior from the historic town of Plymouth Meeting, Pa., talked about watching so many Bulldogs perform well in the Games. He also talked about being in school with his sister, Mia, a freshman on the women's team, his favorite Halloween candy, and much more.
Here's some of what he had to say:
Frierson: As a collegiate swimmer, what is it like having an Olympic gold medalist around every day and training in the same pool that you do? Is it daily inspiration?
Abruzzo: Yeah, definitely. One, they're super fun; they keep it light, which is very nice because when it gets very hard and intense they're there to keep it light, and they have such good perspectives on things because they've done it all at this point. They have really good advice and a really good perspective on it, which I think helps keep everyone grounded but also motivated.
Frierson: What was it like watching the Olympics and seeing Chase, Jay and so many former Bulldogs earn medals and do so well?
Abruzzo: It was really crazy. You know when you're little and you watch the Olympics on TV, you want the Americans to win. But now, it's like, these are people I know personally so it made me get so much more into it.
If you think about how exciting it is for the average person to watch it, think about how it was for the whole Georgia community, especially after the 400 IM. Hali (Flickinger) took the bronze for the women and then Chase won and Jay got second — it was so cool. You go on social media that night and I think every person had something up about Georgia. It was such a cool feeling to be like, wow, we're all a part of such a great culture that has phenomenal athletes representing it.
Frierson: Tell me about home, about Plymouth Meeting. Looking it up on Wikipedia, it was founded in 1686, so it's obviously a place with a lot of history.
Abruzzo: Yes, definitely. My high school (Germantown Academy) was the oldest nonsectarian day school in the country. It was founded in 1759, so even before the United States. Everywhere at home has some tradition, and Valley Forge is 15 minutes from my house.
It's funny when I talk to people from other places because I didn't realize how much tradition we have and how deep it was and all the culturally-significant stuff that was around until I wasn't in it every day.
Frierson: I know Jack Bauerle is always looking for someone to talk Sixers, Eagles, Flyers and Phillies, so are you one of the guys that he goes to talk Philly sports?
Abruzzo: I love Philly pro sports. I don't know the stats like some people do, I'm a little bit more of a casual watcher, but we can talk Philly sports. My family owns bars, sports bars, so I always knew when the teams are doing well because it's a huge thing for us and my dad will have all sorts of things happening down at the bars.
When the Eagles won the Super Bowl, school was canceled so we could go to the parade. It was a huge thing. It's always fun when the games are on because we can talk about it.
Frierson: What is it like having your sister here with you now?
Abruzzo: Oh, it's awesome. My parents love it. It's definitely nice to have a taste of home; so many people on the team are from Georgia, it's like 65% are kids from Georgia, so it's nice to have someone that knows more of the personal stuff — and to make it my sister just makes it that much better. She's fun and she's really fit in with the team well.
My parents were able to come down last weekend (for the meets against North Carolina and South Carolina) and bring my two other little sisters. It's nice that they didn't have to go to two different colleges and we're both here.
Frierson: Have you enjoyed showing her your UGA and your Athens and showing her all of the things that have helped make this place special to you?
Abruzzo: Yeah, totally. I remember her first couple of weeks, I'd walk her all around campus. She got tours and stuff, but you forget. I was able to show her a lot of different things and where to go for this and that.
It's a little weird for me because I sometimes think that I just got there. I think it's helped her a lot too, just having a familiar face around. I think it's worked out nicely because in a lot of ways we're similar but we're also very different, so she's able to have her own identity but also the way has already been cleared a little bit.
Frierson: Now for the really important questions. First, what is your favorite Halloween candy?
Abruzzo: Probably Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. I really like Reese's, those are definitely my favorite candy. M&M's are probably a close second but definitely Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.
Frierson: And finally, do you have a favorite Halloween costume that you've worn?
Abruzzo: I've had a couple that I've enjoyed. I really like Halloween and last year my girlfriend and I were Sharkboy and Lavagirl, and that was fun. That was a movie from everyone my age's childhood.
This year, we're going as Freddie and Daphne from "Scooby-Doo," which is a fun one. When I was little, I was probably only 4 or 5 and Mia was a baby, I was the Big Bad Wolf and she was Little Red Riding Hood. My parents loved that one because it was a siblings costume.
I like the ones that I've worn more recently. It's been fun as I've been a little bit older to do more creative stuff.
Frierson: Is there one on your list that you're going to get to one of these years?
Abruzzo: I feel like I'm doing a lot of things in college because I know that I can't really dress up for too much longer. On Saturday, in weights (training), everyone is showing up in costume and we'll have a little contest there. I'm a senior and I don't have much time left to do Halloween, so I definitely think that recently I've been going a little bit harder than normal.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
Players Mentioned
Free / Back / IM
/ Swimming & DivingGeorgia Swimming & Diving Last Chance Meet - Post Meet Video Recap
Sunday, March 01
Georgia Swimming & Diving Feature - Kennedi Dobson Profile
Tuesday, February 17
Georgia Swim and Dive vs Tennessee Video Recap
Friday, January 23
Georgia Swim and Dive vs Florida State & Arkansas Video Recap
Saturday, January 10