SALT LAKE CITY — While many Americans enjoyed some time off and a long weekend thanks to Martin Luther King Jr. Day, that wasn’t the case for Utah gymnastics’ coaching staff.
Even as the Red Rocks themselves got somewhat of a reprieve, with Utah on a bye week, head coach Tom Farden and assistants Carly Dockendorf and Garrett Griffeth were on the road over the holiday weekend — recruiting.
That is the job, or as Farden described it, the grind.
“We were out recruiting, but we are out every week,” he said. “That is something that never stops. We never stop.”
“My job unequivocally is to get the best recruits and the best coaches here, period. That is what I am paid to do.” — Utah head coach Tom Farden
It is easy to understand why. Recruiting is the lifeblood of any college sport and gymnastics is no different. Part of the reason the Utes were ranked No. 5 in the preseason was the caliber of recent recruiting classes, including the Utes’ most recent class of Maile O’Keefe, Abby Paulson, Jillian Hoffman and Jaedyn Rucker, which was ranked No. 2 in the country by CollegeGymFans.com. And yet, recruiting in gymnastics is a little different, Farden explained.
“We are in a unique situation where we recruit Elite athletes, Level 10 athletes and international athletes,” he said. “Because of that, we are constantly getting pulled in all directions all the time.”
For the last nine years it was Farden himself and only himself getting pulled one way or another. He was Utah’s lone recruiting coordinator. That is no longer the case, however, with the promotion of Dockendorf and arrival of Griffeth.
“With their help we are able to divvy things up,” Farden said. “Garrett and Carly are both assigned certain regions and they have to do the leg work on those regions and make sure we are kept informed. They are more than capable recruiters and have really helped. Our recruiting is in a really good spot, in terms of being able to, to the best of our abilities, never let a kid slip through the cracks.”
Even with the aid of Dockendorf and Griffeth, recruiting duty often falls on Farden’s shoulders. As head coach it is largely his responsibility to seal the deal with recruits.
“There are circumstances where I need to be there and I understand that,” he said. “That is my role as the head coach. Someone has to lock them down.”
Recruiting at Utah has centered on the western United States of late, with 8 of 13 Red Rocks calling Arizona, California, Nevada or Utah home. There is also a gymnast from western Canada, Calgary to be specific.
“Nine out of our 13 athletes are from the West, including Sydney (Soloski) who is from Calgary, but it is the West too,” Farden said. “With the majority of them, their parents want to see their kids compete in front of 15,000. That is an intriguing part of it. Those kids all grew up knowing that Utah is a strong program in the Pac-12, too.”
Still, Farden’s job is to bring the very best to Utah, regardless of where they call home and he knows it.
“My job unequivocally is to get the best recruits and the best coaches here, period,” he said. “That is what I am paid to do.”
And so this weekend, following Utah’s Pac-12 opener against Arizona State, Farden, Dockendorf and Griffeth will be back on the road again — recruiting.
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Red Rocks on the air
No. 5 Utah (4-0) vs. Arizona State (3-2)
Huntsman Center, Salt Lake City
Friday, 7 p.m. MST
TV: None
Radio: ESPN 700 AM
Live stream: UtahUtes.com