Bart Thompson enters his fifth season at the helm of USD men's rowing after being named head coach on Sept. 29, 2021.
Since then, under Thompson, the Toreros have accomplished program-best finishes at some of collegiate rowing and the world's most premier regattas, including but not limited to gold at the Head of the Charles River Regatta and the IRA National Championships. In the summer 2025, he guided the team on it's first ever trip overseas to the highly-touted Henley Royal Regatta in England in which USD upset the event favorites in the first round, shocking the rowing world.
With the aid of Thompson's direction, USD student-athletes have collected national honors such as All-WIRA, IRCA Watchlist and other all-conference recognitions, as well as program-record erg marks. Some have gone as far as to train and compete with national teams.
Thompson first joined the Toreros from Adrian College, where he was tasked with founding the Bulldogs' program from scratch and oversaw the design and construction of the teams' $4 million boathouse.
A rising star in the college rowing world, Thompson led the Bulldogs from 2017-2021, and managed all aspects of the program. His final season coaching the Bulldogs saw the program take four boats to the Mid-Atlantic Rowing Conference (MARC) championship and win all four events, in addition to winning the Men's Points Trophy. Thompson was voted the 2021 MARC Men's Coach of the Year for his efforts.
"I'm humbled, honored, and excited to be the next Head Coach of Men's Rowing at the University of San Diego," Thompson said. "From my first conversations with athletic department staff, it was evident that their mission and values align with my own. They have a strong desire to build a winning program, but even more importantly, a desire to develop young people of character who will succeed in all aspects of their lives. USD is a premier Catholic university in an equally great city, set on a beautiful body of water for rowing. I had the opportunity to visit with three outstanding and passionate members of the USD alumni rowing community during the hiring process, and I am very much looking forward to engaging with them, and the many other alumni who care so much, to preserve and strengthen the tradition of the Torero program."
Prior to Adrian College, Thompson was an assistant founder and served as an assistant coach at the University of Missouri's Kansas City Rowing Club in Kansas City (2016-2017), as well as the co-founder and head coach for the men's & women's juniors program at the Kansas City Boat Club (2015-2017).
He began his coaching career at his high school alma mater St. John's Jesuit High School in Toledo, Ohio, where he was the associate head coach and novice coach from 2012-2014 as the program won more medals than in any other two-year span in program history.
Thompson, who has completed USRowing's Level II Advanced Coaching certification, attended Stanford University and graduated with a degree in American History. While at Stanford, Thompson was a two-sport athlete (lacrosse and rowing), picking up lacrosse after suffering a recurring back injury that forced him into retiring from rowing.
Thompson is a native of Ann Arbor, Michigan.
