(GYM) Gymnastics 2024 - 2025

Thanks for bringing this in. Kayla isn't having much of a Merry Christmas.

Kayla was behind Skye in her recovery so may as well fix whatever gets her right. I had already crossed her off for the 2025 season.

Skye is a bit different as she is progressing on schedule for recovery from her around July 1, 2024 surgery to repair her torn Achilles tendon. The problem as I see it is will UF give Skye a medical clearance to perform on bars and beam if she is ready by midseason? The second part of the problem is should UF allow Skye to burn a year of eligibility to perform on half of her usual events?

If I'm CJR, there is no way I would allow Skye to be a partial performer in 2024 plus risk reinjury if she is brought back too soon.

UF will compete for the national championship in 2025 with the 16 gymnasts we have. The Gators are good enough to beat everyone they face. Failing that, get the NQS score high enough, the higher the better, to be taken seriously by all of college gymnastics.

With Kayla and Skye in 2026 plus what UF has coming back and coming in, UF is a national champion. With these two gymnasts, this would be my overriding goal.

 

Last season, I watched 4 or 5 OU meets when they became available online. I regraded these meets using the standards I'd use for any team including UF. I found in the regrade that OU was being overscored by the judges close to a more humanly .4 to .5 lower in each meet. The easiest to spot were all of the 10s that were not 10s by any standards except the OU standard. The scores were still high, and OU was clearly a dangerous team, but they weren't invincible even though the judges put them on a pedestal which made the Sooner fall in the national semifinals that much harder for them and the whole of the college gymnastics world to comprehend. I knew from the start of the season that OU wasn't invincible. However, they came close to making me eat crow on my predictions.

NCAA gymnastics has a whole slew of new judge's rules wherein the judges have to resolve larger than normal differences and a new meet judges set up with a judge that presides over the judges. I hope the result is more fair scores across the nation and especially including OU.

Looking to the 2025 season, the overinflated spotlight remains on OU. According to College GYM News, all of the OU freshmen are on their freshmen to watch list:

2025 Freshman of the Year Watch List - College Gym News

Any of Oklahoma’s Freshmen

Between the three former five-star recruits Kelsey Slade, Elle Mueller, and Lily Pederson, along with former U.S. elite Addison Fatta, numerous rookies in Norman are capable of contending for this crown. But, with the strength of the returning roster, opportunities for freshmen to break into lineups may be challenging to find. Mueller is coming off an incredible level 10 season while Fatta has been featured heavily in preseason videos, giving that duo a slight leg-up on their classmates entering 2025.

College Gym News like just about all of the media covering college gymnastics has a crush on OU and HC KJ Kindler. No other team in the nation has more than 1 freshman to watch. CGN grades them on their scales and gives OU freshmen gymnasts brownie points, so they have to be the best college freshmen in the nation.

Of course, 14 of 17 CGN contributors picked OU #1. I have OU at preseason #3 behind both LSU and UF. We may have to wait to nationals to see the results, but I think I'm right again in 2025. The OU 2024 team was better than the 2025 OU team. The problem is the Sooners may have to depend on those freshmen. UF was in that boat last season and finished 4th.

In the meantime, we have all of the top teams facing off this season. It should be an outstanding season of meets to enjoy. I like that, but it's where teams end up that counts. Hopefully, we'll get better judging nationally.

EDIT:

To illustrate that I haven't suddenly decided OU was overscored in meets in 2024, simply scroll down to the closed 2023-2024 gymnastics thread. I know you took last season off from the gymnastics thread for personal reasons, but you may find these posts on OU overscoring entertaining:

March 24: Post #788
March 25: Post #792
March 27: Post #802
April 6: Post #855
April 11: Post #927
April 19: Post #1016

It's short but happy reading looking back on OU's 2024 implosion in the national semifinals.

 

Haleigh Bryant of LSU is likely to miss the first meet of the season against Iowa State on January 3 and maybe more. She strained her elbow UCL in LSU's equivalent of Hype Night they call Gymnastics 101:

LSU’s Haleigh Bryant Likely to Miss Season Opener - College Gym News

It will be interesting to see if Bryant is ready to go for the Sprout's Farmer's Market on January 11 which is in Oklahoma City in 2025.

The Gators go to Red Stick on January 17 after opening with a quad in the O Dome on January 10 with #11 Michigan State, #23 Nebraska, and Northern Illinois. Obviously, it would be huge advantage UF if Bryant isn't ready by the Red Stick meet. HC Jay Clark has Bryant shut down for healing, no practicing and no competing, since before the holiday break.

 

Ly Bui is a big help adding both talent and depth to the 2025 season roster. Ly comes in a small package, but she is the real deal:

2025 Gymnastics Roster - Florida Gators



Ly Bui to Join Florida for 2025 Season - College Gym News

As the CGN article points out, Ly is particularly strong on bars which was the Gators Achilles heel for most all of the 2024 season. I also expect Ly to have the opportunity to earn a spot in the vault lineup:

Originally a member of the class of 2025, five-star recruit Ly Bui graduated early and will join Florida this season, the Gators announced Friday.

“We are truly ecstatic to officially welcome Ly Bui to the Gators Gymnastics family,” head coach Jenny Rowland said at the time of her signing. “A fiercely competitive athlete, Ly embodies the perfect blend of grace and power, proving that great things come in small packages. We can’t wait to see her showcase her extraordinary talent in the O Dome and inspire our fans with her passion for gymnastics and her dedication to the Gators through her exceptional performances.”

The addition adds depth to a talented Florida squad. She is particularly strong on bars, but her cleanliness overall will translate well to college gymnastics and give the Gators an additional option. Bui most recently competed as an elite, where she placed first on bars at the 2024 Core Hydration Classic as a senior. In 2023, she finished fourth on bars and seventh in the all-around as a junior.

 

The latest on the Gators season from gatorsgym_pics:



Ly Bui added.

Dr. Sam also reposted this on her site:

x.com

 

2025 Weekly Gymnastics Schedules:

NCAA Women's 2025 Schedule

Still no television coverage for UF's home opener quad, at West Virginia tri with Utah, at Alabama, and Kentucky. Guess we can't have it all. (shrug)

Hopefully, Fox will finally realize they have two 2024 national finals teams to televise and the SEC Network+ will decide to televise the other SEC meets. The quad opener is good too. Florida's schedule is too entertaining to leave off 4 meets from TV coverage. I'm sure somebody will find a way to put these meets on YouTube after the meets, highlights at least.

 

Missouri Tigers 2025 Preview:

Tigers On The Rise! Previewing Mizzou With Jocelyn Moore And Kennedy Griffin

The WCGA Preseason Coache's Poll and my preseason ranking have the Tigers at #9. The College Gym News preseason ranking has the Tigers at #8.

Bottom line is Missouri has a good team that will be knocking on the door to Dallas:

Tigers on the Rise

Over the last three years Mizzou gymnastics has been on a breakthrough. In 2022 they qualified to the NCAA National Gymnastics Championships. In 2023 and 2024 they came up short in qualifying to nationals after being eliminated in the regional final. This season, the Tigers have added many new faces to their roster. Four transfer athletes including Elise Tisler from Towson, Amy Wier from Oklahoma, Lauren Macpherson from San Jose State and Abby Mueller from Illinois. Mizzou is also entering the season with the sixth ranked freshman class. The class includes Ayla Acevedo, Railey Jackson, Olivia Kelly, Lisa Szeibert and Kaia Tanskanen. Missouri gymnastics superstar Helen Hu is also returning to the roster despite initially retiring after the 2023 season. These new additions as well as returning stars such as Jocelyn Moore, Amari Celestine, Kennedy Griffin and many others are why Missouri will be one to watch in the 2025 season.

 

UF has updated the schedule for TV. Changes:

2025 Gymnastics Schedule - Florida Gators

UF is down to two non-televised meets. I feel sure the remaining 2 meets will be televised too.

Fox Sports is televising Michigan State at UCLA on 2/1. It isn't a stretch to think Fox will want to televise UF and Utah at WVU on 2/2 as well.

UF at bama is likely to end up on SEC Network+.

Opening home quad with Michigan State, Nebraska, and Northern Illinois will be televised on SEC Network+.

at WVU tri with Utah - No TV Yet - Would have to be on Fox Sports 1 or 2 if televised.

at Alabama - No TV Yet.

Kentucky will be televised on SEC Network+.

 

College Gym Fans Previews the Coaches Top 25:

#1 to #12: 2025 Previews - CollegeGymFans.com

#13 to #25: 2025 Previews - CollegeGymFans.com

I don't agree with the national perspective that the Gators have ground to make up with the frontrunners, Oklahoma and LSU.

Oklahoma is minus Danae Fletcher for the season and Hanah Scheible is out possibly for the season. The Sooners are down to 14 gymnasts of which 6 are true freshmen.

LSU's Haleigh Bryant has what appears to be a reoccurring elbow injury, also injured during the NCAA Finals yet finished the meet, and Annie Beard has reportedly retired from the team. Zoe Miller, highly regarded freshman, has been season ended since September.

3. Florida

Official Web Site: Link Schedule Roster
Starting Routines Returning: 24/24
Routines Gone: 0 VT, 0 UB, 0 BB, 0 FX
Head Coach: Jenny Rowland
Associate Head Coaches: Adrian Burde, Owen Field
Assistant: Jeremy Miranda
Finish Last Season: 4th
Returning Starters (7): Sloane Blakely (Sr), Skylar Draser (So), Danie Ferris (So), Ellie Lazzari (Gr), Victoria Nguyen (Gr), Anya Pilgrim (So), Leanne Wong (Sr)
Other/Injured Returners (7): Alyssa Arana (So), Kaylee Bluffstone (So), Lori Brubach (Jr), Kayla DiCello (RS So/I), Gabby Disidore (So), Bri Edwards (Sr), Riley McCusker (Sr/I)
Graduated (3): Payton Richards (I), Chloi Clark, Michaela Magee
Other Losses (1): Morgan Hurd (Sr/R/I)
Newcomers (4): Skye Blakely (Fr/I), Lily Bruce (Fr), Ly Bui (Fr), Taylor Clark (Fr), Selena Harris-Miranda (Jr/TR/UCLA)

Quick Assessment: Florida finished their 2024 season in 4th position and will look to challenge the front-runners for the title. They lose no routines from the NCAA Finals lineup. (By the end of the season, the departed Payton Richards and Morgan Hurd were not able to compete). The Gators will be led once again by seniors Sloane Blakely and Leanne Wong, grad students Ellie Lazzari and Victoria Nguyen, and soph Skylar Draser, Dani Ferris, and Anya Pilgrim. These seven comprised the entirety of the final Gator lineup in 2024. The Gators will be deeper in 2025, with the return of seven others, including senior Riley McCusker and some talented sophomores who may have benefited from another year of adjustment and training. Unfortunately for Florida, sophomore Kayla DiCello and incoming frosh Skye Blakely (5*) both suffered Achilles' tears last summer during their runs for spots on the Olympic Team.

Florida, however, will be getting a major boost from UCLA transfer Selena Harris-Miranda. The former Bruin is a capable all-arounder and will push the returning Gator lineups immediately. Florida also welcomes freshmen Ly Bui (4.5*), Lily Bruce (4.5*), and Taylor Clark (3*). Senior elite Bui (4.5*) was a late addition to the Florida roster for 2025. Graduating over a year early (and just 16), Bui qualified on two events to the 2024 Xfinity US Championships, after tying for 1st on uneven bars at the 2024 Core Hydration Classic. The prior year, as a junior elite, she was 7th all-around and 4th on uneven bars at the 2023 Xfinity US Championships. Bruce is a two-time Level 10 National Team member who placed 9th all-around, tied for 2nd on uneven bars, and tied for 6th on vault at the 2023 WDP Level 10 Nationals. She missed much of the 2024 season due to an ankle injury. Clark is a powerful athlete who tied for 5th on vault (pike front half) and placed 2nd on floor exercise as an individual event specialist at the 2023 WDP Level 10 Nationals. She also tied for the floor exercise title, placed 4th on vault, and 6th all-around at the 2022 WDP Level 10 Nationals.

Florida has the core ingredients it needs to put together another title run, with their seven key starters returning and standout transfer Harris. However, some key injuries have impacted the Gators' overall depth, and they'll need to work hard to close the gaps on the front-runners.

 

With the late addition of Ly Bui and since the season has not yet begun, I'm revising my preseason predicted top 10 that I made in post #171 after Hype Night:

ETGator1 2025 Top 10:

1. Florida
2. LSU
3. Oklahoma
4. California
5. Arkansas
6. UCLA
7. Utah
8. Missouri
9. Michigan State
10. Denver

 

Your contributions are appreciated as well. It's nice to have a volleyball insider participating here.

 

Ly Bui on vault at UF posted by Dr. Sam:



Ly is better on bars.

 

Danie Ferris came in at 16 last year too, a young sophomore now.