The future is here for NCAA gymnastics.
Beginning Saturday, coaches from across the country can officially, per NCAA rules, talk to prospects in the class of 2026 — gymnasts who recently finished their sophomore years in high school.
Top prospects will be inundated with texts, phone calls and more today, as programs from across the country look to secure their futures.
That includes Utah gymnastics in its first offseason under head coach Carly Dockendorf.
So which gymnasts will the Red Rocks be targeting?
If past success is any indication, Utah will be in on many of the most promising gymnasts in the country.
Currently — per College Gym News’ recruiting rankings — there are 11 five-star recruits in the class of ‘26.
Since CGN debuted its recruit rankings in 2021, Utah has landed at least one five-star recruit in every recruiting cycle, with a list of gymnasts that includes Kara Eaker (2021), Makenna Smith (2022), Elizabeth Gantner, Ella Zirbes and Camie Winger (2023), and Avery Neff, Zoe Johnson and Clara Raposo (2024), with a current commitment from Bailey Stroud (2025) as well.
Here are the top-rated prospects in 2026, all five-star recruits:
- Presley Duke.
- Jayla Hang.
- CaMarah Williams.
- Madray Johnson.
- Michelle Pineda.
- Hezly Rivera.
- Alicia Zhou.
- Simone Brown.
- Dulcy Caylor.
- Imani White.
- Kieryn Finnell.
Of the 11, it would be a surprise were Utah to land commitments from White or Finnell, based solely on geography. Finnell is from New York, while White is from Florida.
In recent years, the Red Rocks have had success recruiting in the West and Midwest. Florida in particular has been a difficult state for Utah to crack, given the presence of the Gators, plus nearby SEC schools like Georgia, Auburn, Alabama and LSU.
Nearly half of the five-star recruits in the 2026 class are from Texas, and Utah has had some success recruiting the state, signing gymnasts like Jaylene Gilstrap and Deanne Soza in the past five years.
Duke, the No. 1 recruit in 2026, is from Oklahoma, which tends to suggest she’ll land with the Sooners, but Hang is from Washington, where Dockendorf has significant ties. Brown, meanwhile, is from North Carolina, a state Utah recently pulled five-star signee Johnson out of.
The current Red Rocks’ staff has obvious connections to Washington and Canada (Dockendorf), Utah (Jimmy Pratt), Minnesota (Mike Hunger) and Georgia and Louisiana (Hambrick).
Traditionally, the Red Rocks have had a real recruiting presence in states like California, Arizona and Nevada, with recent significant inroads made in states like Indiana and Missouri. Across the Midwest really.
(It should be noted that Dockendorf follows every top prospect who has an Instagram account and social media has taken on a much larger and more significant role in connecting with gymnasts in recent years).
Five-star recruits aren’t the be all, end all, though. Nor are CGN’s recruiting ratings infallible.
Grace McCallum, an American Olympian who won a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics, was rated a four-star prospect in the class of 2021 and she isn’t the only prospect that was underrated.
Sloane Blakely (Florida), Jocelyn Moore (Missouri), Lilly Hudson (Alabama), Anya Pilgrim (Florida), Aleah Finnegan (LSU) and Jordan Bowers (Oklahoma) are just a few of the gymnasts who weren’t rated as top recruits (i.e. five-star recruits) in recent classes who’ve gone on to become some of the best gymnasts in the NCAA.
There are currently 40 gymnasts rated four-star prospects by CGN, with an additional 50-plus gymnasts rated three-star recruits.
Recruit rankings are updated each year as well, with no shortage of significant changes.
For instance, Stroud was a three-star recruit when recruiting of 2025 prospects began. Fast forward a year, and she is now a five-star prospect and top 10 recruit overall.
All of which is to say Utah will be busy for the foreseeable future as it looks to replace a class that includes Smith, Ashley Glynn and Sarah Krump (rising juniors).
The timeline of recruiting for the 2026 class
Per NCAA rules, women’s gymnastics prospects can receive personal contact and recruiting materials from college coaches beginning Saturday. Coaches are now allowed to call athletes and send text messages, direct messages and emails. Verbal offers are also now on the table.
Up to this point, contact between coaches and prospects has been limited to the fairy general, including but not limited to questionnaires, camp information, non-athletic information about schools and any and all materials published by the NCAA.
On August 1, recruits can start taking unofficial and official visits to schools. Prospects are allowed an unlimited number of official visits, but only one official visit is permitted per school.
For an in-depth look at the process of being recruited as a top prospect, you can read about the journey of Utah signee Avery Neff, the No. 1 recruit in the 2024 class, courtesy of Inside Gymnastics.