Utah gymnastics, ranked No. 4 in the country after two weeks of competition, officially begins Big 12 Conference action this Friday at home against Iowa State.
And the Red Rocks enter the newest era of Utah gymnastics having been nothing short of completely and utterly dominant against their new conference competition.
Two hundred ninety five wins, 20 losses and a single tie.
A winning percentage of nearly 94%.
An undefeated record (24-0) in conference championship meets and a 118-7 record in the NCAA portion of the postseason.
Utah has won five straight competitions against Arizona, and has come out on top in 71 of 72 total meetings with the GymCats all-time.
The Red Rocks are 87-17-1 all-time against Arizona State, with three straight wins in the series with the Sun Devils.
Utah is 104-2 against BYU and is in the midst of a 46-meet winning streak. In women’s gymnastics, the Cougars are a rival of Utah’s in name only.
The Red Rocks are 20-0 all-time against Denver, including a 13-0 mark in the postseason.
Utah is 8-0 all-time against Iowa State and the Red Rocks are 5-0 all-time against West Virginia.
Of course, wins and losses matter less in gymnastics (until you get to the postseason) than scores do. They do a particularly poor job of conveying exactly how dominant a team has been.
And Utah has been dominant.
Of the top 10 team scores all time in the current iteration of the Big 12, Utah lays claim to nine, including the top three. Only ASU breaks into the top 10 with a team-best score of 198.450, recorded in 2004.
To put it another way, Arizona, ASU, BYU, Denver, Iowa State and West Virginia have combined to break the 198 mark in a meet 11 times ever.
Utah, meanwhile, has recorded 11 scores of 198 or better over just the last three seasons and has scored better than a 198.125 a total of 13 times in program history.
None of this should be that much of a surprise.
Utah gymnastics is a blue blood in the sport, with an argument to being the best program college gymnastics has ever seen, when you take into account both number of national titles won (nine NCAA titles) and number of trips to the national championships (49 straight).
“This is the most legendary gymnastics program out there,” Utah head coach Carly Dockendorf said.
As such, the Red Rocks enter their Big 12 era as the clear favorites to win the conference. Not only this year but going forward, too.
Of the seven current Big 12 members only Denver has competed at a level close to the Red Rocks both early this season and in recent seasons.
After two weeks, Utah is ranked No. 4 overall, while Denver is ranked No. 13 (ASU is the only other Big 12 team in the top 25, at No. 24).
The Red Rocks currently rank No. 11 on vault (Denver is No. 8); No. 4 on uneven bars (tied with the Pioneers); No. 3 on balance beam (Denver is No. 39); and No. 12 on floor exercise (again, tied with the DU).
The Pioneers have made it to nationals three times in the last decade — in 2017, 2019 and 2023. No other Big 12 team has made it to nationals since the mid-2000s.
The Big 12 is, in terms of quality of programs, a step down in competition for Utah.
Denver is the closest thing to a peer for Utah, whereas in the former Pac-12, the Red Rocks were regularly challenged by UCLA, with Cal, Washington, Stanford and Oregon State all having their moments too (the Bears in particularly have risen to become a genuine national title contender over the last five years).
Will Big 12 membership hurt Utah gymnastics?
Probably not. In its time in the conference, Oklahoma was thoroughly dominant after the arrival of coach KJ Kindler and managed to win all six of its national titles (outright or shared).
Denver, on occasion, gave Oklahoma a run for its money, but otherwise the Sooners were elite nationally even while competing in a conference with teams that rarely challenged them.
While it is true that Utah may have less competitive meets week in and week out during the regular season (to be fair, Iowa State does appear to be on the rise, while ASU and BYU have been consistent in qualifying for the postseason recently) there is nothing to suggest that the Red Rocks will be worse off competing in the Big 12.
Utah’s brand is too established to be hurt by conference membership at this point. The Red Rocks only enhanced the prestige of the Pac-12, not the other way around.
For their part, the Red Rocks have expressed excitement about competing in the Big 12.
The Pac-12 was a memorable part of Utah gymnastics’ history. Few will forget the run of four straight conference championships by the Red Rocks to close things out.
But the Big 12 era offers a chance for new opponents (Denver, Iowa State and West Virginia, especially) and new venues (no current Red Rock has competed at BYU before).
“I’m just really excited to compete against new teams. I’m excited for a change, something different.” Grace McCallum said. “I’m kind of sad we aren’t going to Iowa (State), because my family is really close to there (in Minnesota) or Denver because I have family there too, but I’m really excited to compete against West Virginia, and Florida will be there as well so that will be a fun meet.
“Going to BYU, really close so I’m excited to see what that is like. Overall, excited to be a part of this new conference.”
Added Ella Zirbes: “I’m excited about going against new teams and traveling new places and starting a new legacy for Utah gymnastics in a new conference. I think it will be fun.”
Membership in the Big 12 hasn’t shifted Utah’s focus, which remains fixed upon competing for and winning a national title. And Pac-12 lovers needn’t worry — Utah has already competed against Cal this season, with UCLA and Washington both on the schedule, and Oregon State will compete in the Big 12 in 2026 on a temporary basis, bringing more of the Pac-12 into the Big 12 fold.
But membership in the Big 12 is something new. An unknown. For a program as storied as Utah, new doesn’t happen all that often.
“We are really looking forward to it,” Dockendorf said. “Just to bring new teams into the Huntsman (Center). It will be fun for our fans. We are looking forward to traveling and getting to know new teams and new facilities and really getting to enjoy being part of the Big 12 Conference.”