Free Advice for the men’s NCAA Gymnastics Community
This is all the doing of AI.
“Shelli, all you ever do is complain about the solutions being proposed. So what would YOU do.?”
I’m glad you asked!
#1. Learn from the NFL. At least some parts of it.
I’ve observed over the years that many gymnasts (and parents) drift away from the sport after they leave. Think about creating something like The NFL Legends Program for men’s NCAA Gymnastics, with the main focus being keeping people involved in the sport after graduation. This could eventually build into a crowd. Remember, a big aspect of sports is the social aspect.
The NFL educates people on the rules of the game . What people really don’t understand (including me, although I’m learning more) is the Code of Points. No matter what numbers are used in the scoring, the deeper issue is that people with anything other than the most superficial interest in a sport will eventually want to understand how the officials got the numbers. I went on a 3-week family vacation and was bombarded with NFL radio. Those people had 24 hours of things to discuss, but not much of it was about a touchdown being 7 points. Even in women’s NCAA gymnastics. The 10,435,654 arguments happening every year about women’s NCAA scoring involve enough knowledge of the rules to ascertain the judges are doing it wrong.
#2. Grow the number of boys participating in gymnastics. I’m sure this is being done now but recognize it’s a big deal. The most enthusiastic fans at men’s gymnastics competitions are the young gymnasts. They packed Winter Cup when it was combined with Black Jack, and are thrilled to watch their heroes at NCAA meets. I realize the USAG competition schedule can make it difficult for the little guys to attend NCAA meets, but combine more NCAA and USAG meets if possible.
Sam Mikulak and fans at Winter Cup.
#3. Try to learn from Japan. Most (if not all) of the great Japanese gymnasts competed college gymnastics, and somehow manage to combine that with being really great on the international stage. I have a feeling the Japanese college gymnasts will be competing the straight FIG code next quad. This is just a guess on my part, but part of the reason may be that the Japanese gymnasts mostly attend institutions which are concerned with sports science. That isn’t true in the United States, but what is true is the United States has one of the greatest scientific and medical establishments in the world, most of which is centered in the same educational institutions as the NCAA. Think of some way to make use of those resources.
#4. Don’t forget about Title lX. It may not have been the main factor in the demise of men’s NCAA gymnastics, but it is not your friend. When budget crisis hit, the burden falls disproportionately on males in non-revenue sports. Maybe that needs to stop. Times are changing.
Here’s a chart that helps visualize the relative decline of men’s and women’s NCAA gymnastics over time. Up until about 1992, the rate of decline was similar. Not sure what happened at the point the curves diverged, but it was around that time the Supreme Court ruled individuals could sue for money damages under Title lX, leading institutions to be less likely to eliminate women’s teams (or forced to reinstate women’s teams they initially cut.). UCLA is one example of this.
#5. Be realistic. Promote men’s gymnastics and try to get new fans. Even the NFL does those things. But realize that men’s gymnastics may always be a niche sport in the United States. Its continued survival will likely depend mostly on those who already love it. And that’s OK. Use caution when making comparisons with the women’s side, as they inhabit a vastly different cultural and legal landscape.