RIVERDALE, NY — Last Friday, Joe Brennan sat in Draddy Gymnasium surrounded by classmates and a short distance away from his family in the background. Brennan had already achieved more than he could imagine as a record-setting swimmer on the Manhattan Swim team and an Accounting student who had a cumulative 3.9 GPA. Then, Brennan heard his name called among the hundreds of attendees at the Class of 2025 honors convocation, granting him the prestigious Joseph J. Gunn Alumni Medal.
"I was up against nine other extremely qualified people so I had no clue what was going to happen," said Brennan, who earned his bachelor's degree the next day. "I was confident in myself but it was out of my hands. When I heard my name, it was just a complete shock."
During periods of transition for the Manhattan Swimming & Diving program, Brennan had been a constant. First, he became the program's only individual champion at the MAAC Championships when he took home first place in the men's 100-yard breaststroke in 2024. In the span of three years, Brennan broke his own school record in the 100-yard breaststroke four times, culminating with his time of 53.93 at this year's ECAC Championships at the Naval Academy.
"Knowing that I've made history here is truly humbling and fills me with a sense of pride and accomplishment, but this achievement is not just about me; it's a testament to the support and guidance of my coaches, teammates and everyone who has believed in me along the way," Brennan told GoJaspers.com in 2024.
In his final campaign, Brennan doubled down on his record-setting performances. This time, he set the school record in the 200-yard breaststroke in back-to-back swims at the ECAC Championships. He touched the wall at 2:00.7 in the prelims, before recording a time of 1:59.85 in the finals to enter the sub-two minute club by himself.
"The community around Manhattan is what allowed me to do all this," Brennan reiterated.
Brennan became one of the nine finalists for the Gunn Medal by virtue of his involvement in diverse areas of campus life. He re-founded the University's Pre-Law Society and served as Treasurer/CFO; became a mentor in the O'Malley School of Business; represented the Pen and Sword Honor Society as Executive Board Member and Treasurer; and was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma, the most prestigious honor for a business student.
That is simply the short-list of his impact.
"I don't think I would have had all of the opportunities at a different school that I had at Manhattan," Brennan said. His mind often goes back to the lessons learned in the pool, where it wasn't always easy. After the coaching change entering his freshman year, Brennan was in a tough place and had to rely on his family's support more than ever. His family has since relocated from Queens to St. Augustine, Florida.
"I'm really glad they were there for my freshman year because that was the hardest year of college for me by far," said Brennan on the importance of retreating to Queens whenever he needed his family.
Brennan will spend his summer working at PwC in the city and has a full-time job lined up with Deloitte in 2026 as an audit accountant. Brennan has already started the accounting master's program in the O'Malley School of Business and expects to graduate next year.
Brennan's greatest life lesson to date has been learning to only worry about the things he can control while letting everything else fall into place accordingly.
He leaves Manhattan as one of the more decorated student-athletes in recent memory.
"Everything that happened at Manhattan came as a total surprise. I just came in with the intent of achieving my goals and making my family and friends proud."
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