Tumblers' Tales: Coaches' Expectations High

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The New Year holiday is closely associated with college football. Steps toward a National Championship will be taken today, and competitive bowl games will cap off exciting seasons.

New Year’s Day also jump-starts the countdown to the beginning of the NCAA gymnastics season. The West Virginia University gymnastics team opens its 2016 campaign in 10 days, traveling to Denver, Colorado, for a tri-meet with the No. 16-ranked Pioneers, a new Big 12 Conference affiliate member, and No. 24 Southern Utah on Saturday, Jan. 9, at 8 p.m. ET.

The Mountaineer coaching staff, led by fifth-year coach Jason Butts, is optimistic for the new season. The staff recently sat down to discuss the excitement, challenges and expectations that await the WVU gymnastics team this year.

With the start of the 2016 season just around the corner, how would you access the progress the team has made throughout the preseason?

Head Coach Jason Butts: We have had a few intrasquads, and they’ve all gone really well. From a big-picture look, vault may be our weakest event in terms of depth, but the vaults we have ready to compete are great.

The intrasquads have really instilled a lot of confidence in this team. I think we have at least five 9.8 routines on every event, and that’s a great place to be at the start of the season. I don’t think we’ve been at that level in the past.

Personally, I’m really confident as we head into the season. We have a lot of question marks that we cannot answer until we see how the team responds to in-meet situations, but I don’t think the question marks are as big as they were in the past.

Associate Head Coach Travis Doak: We eclipsed our starting point from past seasons in early December. I think that is really going to benefit us, as we then were able to use the final 18-20 preseason practices to put this team in a position to eliminate extra question marks.

As a coaching staff, one of our goals moving into the 2016 season was to increase the overall skill level. The gymnasts on this year’s team are very capable of doing that. We’ve added E dismounts on the uneven bars and E tumbling passes into our floor routines. Our skill level is going to be a lot more respectable this year, and that’s where we want this program to be.

Assistant Coach Kaylyn Millick: The skills are so much bigger than they used to be – we are not watering down routines just to ensure a hit. The gymnasts are reaching for the bigger skills, and they’re hitting, too. The biggest question mark is – will they hit in a competition?

Are you pleased with the team’s consistency level to this point?

JB: Yes, definitely. Usually going into the first couple of meets, I’m a bit stressed about our routines. This year, we’re a bit further along at this point, and I am surprised when we have a fall in an intrasquad. It is so nice to be at that point at the end of December.

Of the underclassmen returners, who are you looking at to assume a leadership role this year?

JB: (Sophomore) Jordan Gillette is night-and-day from where she was at this point last year. She’s definitely in on beam and floor right now, and she’s pushing for a spot in the bars lineup. Her confidence is so high right now, and she’s been a rock star in our intrasquads.

(Junior) Alexa Goldberg will compete in the all-around this season. She’s in a completely different place this year – I’ve seen great improvements in her skills and training, even since September.

Jordan and Alexa are both so low key in the gym – that’s their leadership. They are low key and low stress.

The number of returners coming back is going to be a huge asset for us this year. We’re going to need them to all step-up and mimic the low key, task-focused attitudes they’ve had in the gym.

The team ended the 2015 season on a big high, scoring a season-best 196.075 in the regular-season finale, finishing a program-best second at the Big 12 Gymnastics Championship and tallying 195.65 at the NCAA Morgantown Regional Championships inside the WVU Coliseum. Do you see this year’s squad picking up right where last year’s team left off?

TD: I absolutely think so. The biggest thing I want this team to build on from last year is the consistency that we displayed. That’s all we need to do, and that is what we have focused on every day at practice. When a gymnast has a mistake in her routine, it’s a shock, and that’s exactly where we were at the end of last season.

As long as this team embraces our ‘consistency’ message, I think we’ll be in a great spot.

The team lost two vocal leaders in graduates Dayah Haley and Beth Deal. Who are you looking at to assume that role this year?

TD: I honestly think the team is looking at Jason and the rest of the coaching staff for leadership this year. This is a really cohesive group, and they’re letting the coaching staff lead. There is not a sense of entitlement with the team this year.

JB: I think our 2016 schedule poster is a great example of what this whole season is about – you put on the leotard and you compete for West Virginia University. We are a team, and everyone has a leadership role. I have seen some of our freshmen assume leadership roles already, and that’s great – every gymnast is finding her way to lead this team. I think that’s helping us come together as one unit.

This year’s theme is “Mountaineer Legacy.” How do you define that theme, and how will it be applied throughout the season?

KM: It’s the idea that you are competing for something bigger than just yourself. As Jason and Travis mentioned, by making the coaching staff the official leaders, we’ve brought out a leadership quality in each of the gymnasts. (Freshman) Kirah (Koshinski) helps out her teammates at practice each day. (Sophomore) Zaakira (Muhammad) inspires the team with the way she trains at every practice. Each gymnast is competing for the program this year, not herself.

JB: I told the team they each have a choice to do their jobs well. They know their job is to represent this University well, and they’ve really bought in to doing their best in the gym each day. No one is entitled to anything this year – they each have to earn everything. It’s been a big change in attitude, and I love what I’m seeing right now.

Six freshmen join the team this year. What excites you about this year’s class?

TD: I like that their strengths are all completely different, and together they are forming one great, powerful punch. Together, they are putting up some great routines. Their hit routines really catch your attention because it is good gymnastics. These freshmen are going to be able to hit routines immediately and potentially score 9.8+. The adjustment period will not really be there, and that’s great.

JB: I’m most excited because the gymnasts that will compete don’t feel like freshmen. They carry themselves like they’ve already been here for a season. I know they’re nervous, but they have a good way of hiding the nerves. They just get their jobs done, and that’s what excites me the most.

KM: This is really one of the first classes as a whole that has come in loving gymnastics, especially West Virginia gymnastics. They will run through a brick wall – they do not want to disappoint the coaches. They work really hard despite their nerves. I think this class has a ‘wow’ factor that will be exciting to watch.

The 2016 schedule features six teams ranked in the coaches’ preseason poll. The slate is certainly challenging, especially in February when the team will hit the road for four meets, including trips to No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 3 Alabama. What do you like about this schedule, and how will the challenges help this team develop and progress toward postseason?

TD: What I really like is it will force us to use our depth. With this schedule and our dual week (meets at Iowa State and at Oklahoma Feb. 5-7), we’re going to have to use everyone. No one should feel settled in a lineup spot. We’re going to give a lot of gymnasts some opportunities to do great things. That’s what I like about this schedule – it’s going to force our hands.

JB: This schedule also puts us in some great opportunities to get solid road scores, and it’s going to be up to us to take advantage of those opportunities. We always perform decent at home, and we should feel confident that if we also hit on the road, we can earn incredible scores, and that will help push us toward a seed in a regional championship.

I’m excited. We want to get over the hump of being afraid of having two meets in one weekend. That swing at Iowa State and at Oklahoma will be a challenge, but competitions should be easier than practices. If we can take advantage of our opportunities, this season could be incredible.

How does the addition of Denver as an affiliate member change the dynamics within the Big 12 Conference?

JB: Denver is a really strong team. Oklahoma is No. 1 for a reason, so it may be a battle for second place at the conference championship in March, but I think we can do it. Every gymnast has to stay on the equipment and that evens it out.

How important is it for you to see your athletes balance their workload inside the gym and in the classroom?

JB: We remind every gymnast the day she steps foot on campus that there is not a professional gymnastics league. Therefore, each of these student-athletes needs to be ready for the real world after four years at WVU. I know it’s tough. It’s hard being a full-time gymnast and a full-time student, but I think our student-athletes to a great job at balancing their workloads.

What makes competing inside the WVU Coliseum so special, and how does it give this team an advantage?

TD: Each of the coaches on this staff loves West Virginia University. Therefore, when you get to represent something you love so much, it’s pretty awesome. We get to experience the excitement that surrounds this team and this University at every home meet in the WVU Coliseum, and that makes our jobs so special. We’re proud to compete, and we’re always proud of the team on the floor.

JB: I love the meet day atmosphere inside the WVU Coliseum. It’s such an amazing feeling each time we get to compete in front of our home crowd. The fans are always enthusiastic and cheer so loudly for this team.

Why is it a special honor to be a Mountaineer gymnast?

KM: This program is just so unique. I think the gymnasts know how much this staff supports them, the University and the sport of gymnastics. I love how excited this team is to compete each meet. That’s what it’s all about – the excitement that surrounds representing a University you love.

JB: This state loves West Virginia University, and I know other Universities do not receive the same universal support that we do. To represent this state is an incredible honor.

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