Utah’s gymnastics team has made the Huntsman Center one of the best atmospheres in collegiate gymnastics, but this year the Utes are experimenting with a relatively new venue and new format for one of their “home” meets.
The Utes, who open the season Jan. 3 against Kentucky, will host the Best of Utah meet on Jan. 11 in West Valley’s Maverik Center. The Utes will compete against BYU, SUU and Utah State in a podium format in the meet, giving it a similar feel to the Pac-12 Championships scheduled for the venue on March 21.
The Best of Utah meet is the first in a five-year contract with the venue. The only other time Utah’s four in-state teams competed was in the 2003 Smith’s Cup Challenge, won by the Utes.
“We are thrilled at the opportunity to return to add the Best of Utah NCAA Gymnastics meet to our schedule and give our student-athletes the chance to compete on podium before the postseason,” Utah gymnastics coach Tom Farden said.
The Utes’ schedule, which was released by the Pac-12 on Wednesday, also features four Friday night home meets, in addition to the Red Rocks preview scheduled for Dec. 13.
That event, plus six other meets, will be televised by the Pac-12 Networks. The annual showdown with rival UCLA is scheduled for Feb. 23 at UCLA and will be televised by ESPN2.
New this year to the conference is the requirement that all teams must have dual meets with conference members in the regular season, allowing a regular-season champion to be crowned.
The schedule release wasn’t all good news, though, as Utah and Georgia couldn’t make their previously announced meet work due to scheduling conflicts, so the Utes are hosting Utah State on March 13 to fill the void.
UTAH GYMNASTICS SCHEDULE
(All times Mountain)
Fri., Dec. 13 Red Rocks Preview, 7 p.m., Pac-12 Networks
Fri., Jan. 3 vs. Kentucky, 6 p.m., Pac-12 Networks
Sat., Jan. 11 Best of Utah with BYU, SUU, Utah St., (Maverik Center)
Fri., Jan. 24 vs. Arizona State, 7 p.m.
Sat., Feb. 1 at Arizona, 2 p.m.
Sat. Feb. 8 at California, 1:30 p.m., Pac-12 Networks
Sat., Feb. 15 vs. Oregon State, 1 p.m., Pac-12 Networks
Sun., Feb. 23 at UCLA, 4 p.m., ESPN2
Sun., March 1, at Washington, 3 p.m., Pac-12 Networks
Fri., March 6 vs. Stanford, 7 p.m.
Fri., March 13 vs. Utah State, 7 p.m.
Sat., March 21 Pac-12 Championships in West Valley City, Pac-12 Networks
April 2-4, NCAA Regionals
April 17-18 NCAA Championships in Fort Worth
