Jerry Champer is entering his first season as the Director of Operations for the men's and women's swimming and diving teams after serving on the Georgia coaching staff for 21 seasons, including nine as Associate Head Coach. Before becoming a full-time coach in 2003, he was a volunteer assistant for two seasons.

Virtually every top performance in the butterfly on Georgia’s all-time list has been established during Champer’s tenure, including Luca Urlando, Camden Murphy, and Chelsea Britt in the 100 and Urlanod, Gunnar Bentz, and Hali Flickinger in the 200. DeScenza (six from 2003-06), Gil Stovall (2008) and Mark Dylla (2011) were NCAA champions under Champer’s tutelage. He also has had 25 SEC champions, including eight by DeScenza and four by Dylla, during his watch.

Champer served as the head coach at Western Illinois from 1994-2001. He was named to the WIU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012 as the school’s winningest coach. Champer was named the Mid-Continent Conference Men’s Coach of the Year four times and the Women’s Coach of the Year twice as he led the Leathernecks to five conference titles. Champer earned Southern States Conference Men’s Coach of the Year honors in 1999 and 2000 after leading his team to conference titles. His 2001 men won the Midwest Championships title and he was chosen as the Midwest Championships’ Coach of the Year. He was named the 1998 and 2001 Illinois Men’s University Division Coach of the Year. 

Under Champer’s direction, Western Illinois produced 44 conference champions and 46 all-conference distinctions. One of his former pupils represented the country of Georgia in the 2000 Olympics. 

Champer has served as an Assistant Coach on two USA Staffs: 

USA National Team vs. Pac12 Dual meet in 2017 and the 2019 World University Games in Naples Italy.

Champer is a 1989 graduate of Wisconsin-LaCrosse, where he was a four-year letterwinner, team captain (1987-88), and an All-American in 1987. Following graduation, he served as an assistant coach for the Eagles for two seasons before departing for Western Illinois.