By Jeff Shearer
AuburnTigers.com
AUBURN, Ala. - For the first time in a decade, Joe Patching’s daily routine does not include time in the pool.
“I moved to boarding school when I was 12, and probably since then I haven’t had more than two or three weeks off swimming at a time,” said Patching, who earned 16 All-America honors and 51 individual dual meet victories in his Auburn swimming career. “That’s probably the longest holiday I’ve ever had in 10 or 11 years.”
Patching has not officially retired from swimming, not with an alumni meet coming up next month.