In his second season, Swan guided a team that finished the 2008 season unranked and last in the Big Ten to a 2009 year-end ranking of No. 46 in the nation and a tie for fourth in the Big Ten regular season standings with a 6-4 league mark. The team improved from 7-17 to 18-9 in just one year and enjoyed the highest jump in the national rankings over a one-year period (as high as No. 42) of any team in Division I, the second time in Swan's career that his team has earned that distinction.

In 2009-10, Swan helped Northwestern achieve its highest ranking in five seasons (No. 36) when the Wildcats upset then-No. 18 Alabama, 4-3, on Jan. 22.

Additionally, Swan has done tremendous work on the recruiting front for the Wildcats, building a foundation that will reap benefits for years to come. Swan's first recruiting class was deemed No. 12 in the nation by tennisrecruiting.net and he followed it up with a 2010 recruiting class ranked No. 8.

Swan came to Northwestern after one year as the head men's tennis coach at DePaul University. While at DePaul, Swan improved the team immensely. On the heels of an 8-14 season, Swan's Blue Demons finished the 2006-07 season with an 18-7 record and reached a ranking as high as No. 58 in the nation.

Prior to taking the position as head coach at DePaul, Swan served as associate head coach at NU from 2003-06. While at NU, Swan helped take the program to new heights as the Wildcats jumped from sixth in the Big Ten to back-to-back fourth-place conference finishes. He also helped lead the team to a top-40 national ranking twice. In 2004 and 2005, the 'Cats reached the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament. They also made an appearance in the 2006 NCAA Tournament.

In his playing days, Swan was world-ranked professionally in singles and doubles before moving into coaching. While at Michigan, Swan was the recipient of the Scholar-Athlete award in 1995 and earned his way onto three Academic All-Big teams from 1996-98. In 1996, Swan was elected to the All-Big Ten team as the Wolverines went on to win the Big Ten championship. Swan captained the squad until his graduation in 1998.