A week ago, Avery Neff was still using a walker.
Utah’s star freshman gymnast struggled to put weight on her two sprained ankles. She felt like her season was over. Her mannerisms reflected it, too.
Neff was sulking, and it was bringing down Utah’s team morale. That was until Red Rocks coach Carly Dockendorf pulled her aside at the beginning of last week.
“I could see she was struggling mentally a little bit,” Dockendorf said. “It is [really hard] to go from doing the all around and then all of a sudden not being able to do anything. And for someone who really hasn’t had to sit out due to injury, it’s a really new space to be in.”
Utah’s head coach then asked the freshman phenom, “What’s your goal?”
Neff replied: “I want to be back for alumni night.”
She did just that on Friday night in No. 4 Utah’s 197.675-196.125 win over No. 19 Arizona.
Sure, it was only on uneven bars. Sure, she only scored a 9.825 in her first rotation back. But Neff achieved what she set out to do.
With a mindset change, the South Jordan native started progressing and rapidly rehabbing her ankles. Her focus was on her comeback, not dwelling on her severe injury.
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Avery Neff stopped short on her floor routines due to an injury, during a Big12 Gymnastics meet against Iowa State, at the Jon M. Huntsman Center, on Friday, Jan 17, 2025. .
“Every single day I kind of progressed really quickly, and then I kind of got stuck for probably a couple days,” Neff said “Then that’s when I kind of lost a lot of hope. Carly could see me in the gym, and kind of my mannerisms were really kind of taking on the team too. And so I think that was kind of a switch that I was like, ‘If I really want to give back, I have to change my mindset.’
“The mind is such a powerful tool that if you put your mindset to anything it’s possible.”
By the beginning of this week — four days before Utah’s Friday meet — Neff was donning a leotard in the Dumke Gymnastics Center. She was participating in warmups with her teammates before the meet.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Utah Red Rocks Avery Neff competes on the uneven bars during a gymnastics meet against Arizona at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, February. 7, 2025. The University of Utah won.
Clearly something had changed for the better.
“It was [all about] her desire and motivation to be back out here,” Dockendorf said. “I just said, ‘You’re going to have to change your mindset. I’m sorry your ankles hurt. This is part of sport. Injury is part of sport. And if you get to the place where you feel good enough with your ankles and you can go, then let’s do it.‘”
At the end of Neff’s bar routine, thousands of Red Rocks' fans erupted in the Jon M. Huntsman Center. Neff then smiled and hugged her teammates.
She was happy to be in front of Utah’s fans — but even happier to be back competing in the sport she loved.
Neff might’ve even proved something to herself.
“Definitely beforehand, I kind of thought that my season was over,” Neff said. “But I progressed fast, and it was just the best feeling to just get out there and do what I love.”
Having Neff back is a good sign for the Red Rocks. They’re still chasing an 11th NCAA championship, which would be their first win in over 30 years.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Utah Red Rocks’ Avery Neff competes on the uneven bars during a gymnastics meet against Arizona at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, February. 7, 2025. The University of Utah won.
If the former No. 1 recruit can get back to tip-top shape and compete in all four routines, Utah’s odds would certainly improve.
Neff brings that kind of impact.
“She brings a level of competitiveness to our team that is so impactful for everybody,” Utah’s coach said.
“She competes every day in practice, and when she’s out here, she’s just so hungry to stick everything and hit everything. I really think that it elevates our entire team to be better, and so to have her back out is it’s huge for us, and it’s going to be really important moving forward to have her back in practice on more events.”
