Preview ’08
JEFF SIPSEY (YOCULAN)
EIGHT-4-2-1 is a telling algebraic pattern describing the pre-season
coaches’ poll for 2008. The numbers represent the amount of
first-place votes given to Stanford, Penn State, Oklahoma and
Ohio State, respectively. They also suggest that Stanford, which
last won in 1995, is the overwhelming favorite.
But predicting gymnastics results several months in advance is perhaps
slightly less accurate than forecasting the weather … several months in
advance. Too many random variables creep into the equation. “I never
put much stock in it,” says Stanford coach Thom Glielmi of his team’s
No.-1 rank. “What matters is what your team is come April.”
Last April Stanford placed third, behind winner Penn State and runner-up Oklahoma, the defending champion. Stanford is no doubt hoping to
be the third team in a row to win the big one on its home floor.
The Cardinal certainly has the talent to do it, with 2006 world team
member David Sender and Sho Nakamori (’07 world team alternate),
who missed the ’07 campaign because of shoulder surgery. The addition
of a large freshman class gives the squad considerable depth.
Despite the lopsided rankings, nobody is conceding victory just yet.
“Stanford will have an advantage by being the host school this year,”
begins Oklahoma coach Mark Williams. “However, we have the top two
collegiate all-arounders in the country.” Indeed, Sooner seniors
Jonathan Horton and Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons,
winners of the last two NCAA all-around titles,
JEPSON respectively, are quite a tandem.
Penn State will have to replace Nissen-Emery
Award recipient Matt Cohen, but Penn State
coach Randy Jepson is still confident. “We’ve
got a good core of seniors who have been
there … know what it takes,” he says. “It’s
gonna be a several-team race again this year. And
again, the whole thing comes down to health.”
Dealing with injuries is every team’s nightmare, and
the coming season could yield more than usual. The
NCAA men will switch to the new FIG Code of
Points, which lifts the lid on difficulty. That means
gymnasts are likely to attempt more difficult routines in an effort to gain an edge. Still, the coaches
voted to ditch the 10.0-system for the perceived benefits of the new rules. “Some of the teams … can still be
very competitive by doing easier, cleaner routines as
compared to teams that are taking risks,” Jepson says.
“And I think it makes a lot of sense … both for the
NCAA and for developing our international-caliber
athletes in the collegiate system.”
Adds Williams: “It should be a good thing for the
guys who are training for USA Championships and
beyond…. I also think the open-ended Code will
reward teams that play it smart with the 10 points of
execution [available]. …It is possible to see bigger
swings in team scoring.”
DEBBIE POE (JEPSON);
Glielmi has never been one to sweat the details, but instead prefers to
keep things simple. “I always think our chances [to win] are great, no
matter what my team is,” he says optimistically. “After all, this is sport,
and stranger things have happened.” Then he admits to some conventional thinking. “But I do think there is an advantage to having the meet
at home.”
And that’s one pattern he’d like to see continue for another year.
Georgia remains the women’s team to
beat, but the men’s field is wide open
By Dwight Normile
AS winner of the last three NCAA championships and host to
the next, Georgia is predictably favored to win again in 2008.
Perhaps the only person who doesn’t think so is the Gym
Dogs coach herself, Suzanne Yoculan. Now in her 25th year
on the job, she knows her track record well.
In three previous tries, Georgia has won only once i n
Athens. That was 1989, when the Gym Dogs were
ranked fifth. “I feel like I’m a much better underdog YOCULAN
coach,” Yoculan says. “I love when people are counting
us out. I’m not crazy about hosting if we’re No. 1.”
Georgia wasn’t No. 1 last year, since Florida led the
rankings all season and won the competitive SEC
championship. After SECs, the Gym Dogs even lost
two key performers, Ashley Kupets and Kelsey
Erickson, to injuries. “I feel like people were definitely licking their chops,” Yoculan says.
When the Super Six Finals concluded, however,
Florida might have been licking its wounds. The
Gators finished third, behind Georgia and Utah. “I
think [Florida] expected to win,” Yoculan says. “They
beat us at SECs before we had the two injuries.”
Gators coach Rhonda Faehn won’t bite when asked
if she let one slip away. “Definitely not,” she begins.
“Yes, it was wonderful to be ranked No. 1,… However,
all of the teams ranked in the top were so close. It was
anyone’s shot at NCAAs … but Georgia had a great
competition.”
Yoculan says she eased the Super Six pressure by
telling her gymnasts they did not have to be perfect to
win. Instead, she stressed that they not react to mistakes,
since it can have a snowball effect. “Florida made some
mistakes [and] they tightened up,” Yoculan says. “We
had mistakes too, but we didn’t tighten up.”
Says Faehn: “Super Six Finals was definitely a learning
experience, and our team left the arena already geared up
for the changes we wanted to make. They really wanted to look at this
season as more of a continuation from everything we learned last year.”
Utah coach Greg Marsden says the same teams should be in the
hunt again this season. “Georgia has to be the team to beat, until someone beats them,” he says. “[Florida] did everything [last season] except be
brilliant on that evening. They’ll be back — maybe stronger.”
The Gym Dogs didn’t lose any routines from last year’s NCAAs,
although five key gymnasts underwent surgery in the offseason, including
two-time defending all-around champ Courtney Kupets. The Georgia
junior had microfracture surgery on her left knee (to regenerate cartilage),
and, if all goes well, hasn’t ruled out a return to elite, according to
Yoculan. “The doors are open for a lot of things right now,” Yoculan
says of Kupets’ future. “She’s doing a balance beam (routine) that would
have a difficulty value of 7.1 (under the FIG Code of Points).”
Entering 2008 with a squad in rehab has Yoculan a bit concerned,
though. “I think in a lot of ways we’re the underdog,” claims Yoculan,
who plans to retire after the 2009 season. “This will be our hardest
championship to win, if we even can do it. There are some high expectations for us on campus. We have a lot more to lose than anybody else.”
If Yoculan’s 2008 strategy is to underestimate her team’s chance of a
ninth title — which would tie Utah for the record — it’s a clever one.
After all, she just loves to be counted out.
