2003 Oklahoma Men's Gymnastics Season Preview

Jan. 7, 2003

Outlook

Take the 2002 season and use it as an exact blueprint for 2003. That is what OU men's gymnastics head coach Mark Williams wants to do. He wants the same motivation, the same season long concentration and the exact same determination, which led his Sooners to the national championship in 2002.

"The challenge for this year's squad is to remain motivated," said Williams. "Everyone knows it is more difficult to repeat because you can't reproduce the desire to win the first title."

The Sooners return 80 percent of their scoring from last season, including All-Americans Daniel Furney, Josh Landis, Quinn Rowell, David Henderson, Jock Stevens and Brett Covey. Rowell is one of three gymnasts, Heath Mueller and Brian Trause being the others, who battled injuries for much of last season and are expected to be significant contributors this season. Add in USA national competitor Josh Gore, sophomore Michael Gehart and perhaps the most impressive freshman class in the country and the Sooners have the athletes to take the crown again when the championships get under way in Philadelphia at Temple University in April.

The first step in beginning the 2003 campaign was selecting captains and the 2003 team voted Furney, Landis and Rowell into that role.

"The kind of leadership the captains are providing letting the freshmen know what the whole process of the season is like and where they're trying to go," said Williams. "I think the captains have been very solid in their leadership. I expect them to continually teach this team what Oklahoma gymnastics."

Seniors

Landis returns from an off season in which he finished four on pommel horse adn fifth on high bar at the USA Championships. Landis will compete on every event except the still rings this season. After being ranked in the top three on floor and pommels all of last season, he will lead OU in those events this year.

Carrion battled through elbow surgery last season and was only fully healthy at the end of the season. This season he came into camp the healthiest he has been in several years. He has the ability to compete in the all-around and is guaranteed to be solid on the floor, rings and vault.

Furney is one of the most talented athletes in the athletic department, let alone on the gymnastics team. He has battled several injuries during his gymnastics career, most recently battling back from a torn bicep and knee surgery during the 2002 campaign. Furney is regarded as possibly the best gymnast at the collegiate level and should lead the Sooners both psychically and mentally.

Brett Covey didn't train with the group attempting to make the USA National Team because he was busy securing an invitation to compete at the World Championships for his homeland of Canada. Over the summer Covey took the still rings title at the Canadian National Championships and will likely be part of their World Championship team come November. He is one of the Sooners' best on still rings and will contribute consistently on the high bar as well.

Juniors

Rowell has endured more physically during his gymnastics career than any other Sooner on the squad. Since coming to Oklahoma he has suffered numerous injuries, most recently a broken wrist last season. Despite the injuries, Rowell was an All-American on high bar last year and is expected to be one the Sooners' strongest on high bar and parallel bars in 2003.

When the coaches openly label you the team clown it is generally a negative. When that liveliness energizes a team, the results are far from a hinderance. Jock Stevens may be a clown in some instances but he is an exceptional gymnast who was named an All-American on the vault last season. He will likely compete as an all-rounder this season. Stevens approach may be different but as Williams says, 'When he's at the top of his form, he is almost unbeatable."

Heath Mueller came into last season with high expectations for himself as an individual competitor. Injuries, including a stress fracture, hurt his scores. His season ended unexpectedly when he was injured in the NCAA preliminaries and couldn't compete in the team finals. This season Mueller is healthier than he has been since high school and is expected to compete on at least five events, if not as an all-arounder.

Sophomores

Second year Sooners Henderson and Gore spent their summers in the gym training for the 2002 USA National Championships. The duo comes into the season as gymnasts on the map nationally, primed to solidify their mark on the collegiate game. Henderson is expected to defend his All-America status on still rings, along with fellow teammate Shannon Carrion, while Gore will step up and become an all-around competitor for OU this season.

"Both David and Josh are ready to make names for themselves within the college ranks," said Williams. "In the near future both can be among the top gymnasts in the nation if they put in the necessary work."

Rounding out the sophomore class are Michael Gehart and Brian Trause. Gehart specialized on the vault last season and competed a few times on the floor. His arsenal of events will likely expand this year, adding still rings, high bar and parallel bars.

After redshirting his freshman year and battling an injured elbow last season, Brian Trause is ready to contribute. He will primarily compete on the pommel horse and parallel bars but could see time on the floor exercise.

Freshman

Coach Williams and staff wish every class was this easy to recruit and also as talented. James Myers and Curtis O'Rorke are from the Norman area and both trained at Oklahoma Elite. Jamie Henderson saw his brother win a national championship last season and knew the choice of competing for OU was an easy one. While Henderson and O'Rorke are expected to have an immediate impact on the team (he competed in USA Nationals this summer), Myers will need some polishing and experience before they becoming a regular in the Sooner rotation.

Schedule

Oklahoma faces one of the nation's top schedules in 2003 as the Sooners look to defend their national title. OU faces the top six teams from last year and nine of the top 12.

The season kicks off at Michigan, which finished fourth in 2002, on Jan. 18. The following weekend OU travels to the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., for the Rocky Mountain Open, before facing Nebraska in Lincoln on February 1.

The home slate is filled with a number of quality teams. On Feb. 14, the Sooners face Iowa at Lloyd Noble Center. OU welcomes Nebraska the following Friday with Stanford and Ohio State visiting two weeks later. Oklahoma finishes the season with a return trip tp Lincoln, Neb., for the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Conference Championships.

"By the time we get to NCAA's we'll have met just about every team I think will have a chance to challenge for the national championship," said Williams. "I think that's really the key to scheduling. I'd just as soon go right at the competition that we'll have in dual meets this season and see what they've got, so we're not intimidated when we go into the postseason."

University of Oklahoma Athletics

2003 Oklahoma Men's Gymnastics Season Preview

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