#NCAAMGym Week 6 Power Rankings Presented by SPIETH America
Every week we’ll be releasing a “Power Rankings” (presented by SPIETH America) that aims to provide a fluid picture of how each team across the NCAA is doing at the moment. The idea is to try not to focus too much on scores and look more at the current state of the team. The (+) or (-) next to each team relates to how far they rose or fell from last week’s Power Rankings.
This year’s Power Rankings are an average based on the individual rankings of five individuals:
Yordan Aleksandrov (former Cal gymnast)
Logan Bradley (former Illinois gymnast)
Ben Cooperman (former Penn State gymnast)
Jess Frankl (photographer/CGA expert)
Alex Wittenberg (former Minnesota gymnast)
1. Stanford Cardinal (-)
The Cardinal topped 420 again last weekend thanks to a monster parallel bars rotation and strong all-around performances from Brandon Briones, Brody Malone and others. Stanford’s pretty much in a league of their own at this point, but it’ll still be interesting to see whether five-up, five-count helps the Card separate themselves more or actually narrows the gap slightly. They’re off this weekend.
2. Oklahoma Sooners (-)
The Sooners picked up another convincing win in front of a home crowd this past weekend. They now have four competitions under their belt with their lowest score being 408.2 and their highest a 412.2. There is no denying OU has been remarkably consistent near the top of the leader-board, but the question is how much growth potential is there left for this 2020 team? With some of the Big Ten teams picking up steam, Oklahoma may feel a little less comfortable in this No. 2 spot. They will have a tough matchup this weekend in Ann Arbor against the surging Wolverines.
3. Michigan Wolverines (+1)
Michigan posted the best team score (413.4) in the Big Ten so far in their win over UIC and NIU at home last weekend, landing them No. 1 among the Big Ten in this week’s rankings. The Wolverines rank No. 1 in the country on high bar, and if they can keep the momentum going on that event and nurture young talent like Paul Juda, they should finish the regular season as the top dog in the conference. Now, Michigan faces their biggest test yet: They take on the Sooners at home this weekend in what should be one of the weekend’s best matchups.
4. Illinois Fighting Illini (-1)
After dropping well below the 400-mark in their second week out, Illinois has improved each of their last three performances, culminating in a season-high 409.7 at home this past weekend. They have been consistent across the board and especially strong on rings. Where can they improve? The Illini rank No. 6 in the country on pommel horse and are much better than that. Once Michael Paradise gets going, he will lead a top-three horse team in the country.
5. Nebraska Cornhuskers (-)
Nebraska did not compete last weekend. Their early-season momentum took a hit the weekend prior, when they lost to Illinois in Champaign by a decent margin. Fortunately they have an opportunity to revitalize themselves this weekend with a big matchup against the Gophers at home.
6. Ohio State Buckeyes (+1)
The Buckeyes are slowly climbing our rankings, moving up from No. 7 last week after being ranked as low as No. 9. It is becoming undeniable that Rustam Sharipov has some serious talent on this team. Justin Ah Chow and Kazuki Hayashi have stood out as freshman to go along with Angel Leon and Jesse Tyndall who are emerging as sophomores. Add some fantastic specialists like Trevor Cummings on pommel horse and this is a very strong Ohio State team.
7. Penn State Nittany Lions (-1)
The Nittany Lions did not compete last weekend but look to bounce back from a sub-400 performance in Colorado Springs the weekend before. They take on William & Mary at home on Saturday.
8. Minnesota Golden Gophers (-)
For the fourth time this year, Minnesota scored below the 400-mark this past Friday night. They have been struggling mightily on pommel horse and rings while simultaneously lagging behind the rest of the field on floor and vault. The good news is that they are historically excellent on the latter. Mike Burns can revive this team if they can come back to form on their traditionally stronger events.
9. Iowa Hawkeyes (-)
Iowa continued to show signs of improvement last weekend in Norman, where they lost to the Sooners but increased their team score from the week before. The Hawkeyes are off this weekend.
10. Navy Midshipmen (-)
Navy cashed in their fourth-straight score of 400+ as they dominated the field at the All-Academy Championships on Saturday. It has become very apparent that the Midshipmen are the strongest team in their conference and have yet to face many teams outside the ECAC. Navy will face two tough challenges after Winter Cup as they head out on the road to face Ohio State and Cal.
11. California Golden Bears (-)
Cal finished third at the Southwest Cup with a score of 396.4, which was within five points of a season-high. The Bears’ Jonathan Wang and Darren Wong continue to impress, but the team will need stronger performances throughout the lineup, especially on pommel horse and high bar, to get back above 400. Cal is off this weekend.
12. Arizona State Sun Devils (-)
The Sun Devils have enjoyed finishes above the 380-mark in all five of their competitions this year but have only hit 390+ once. This is certainly a team that is capable of getting close to 400 with Kiwan Watts at the helm. They will look to do so after a few weeks off before returning to competition February 9 at home for the Sun Devil Classic.
13. Army Black Knights (-)
Army posted a season-high (394.1) by more than five points despite losing to Navy last weekend. It was a much-needed turnaround for the Black Knights, who hadn’t been able to match or best their season-debut team score of 388.55. Army faces Minnesota and Nebraska in Lincoln this weekend.
14. William & Mary Tribe (-)
William & Mary took a rest this past weekend after a terrific first few competitions. They will take on Penn State this Saturday on the road as they look to approach the 390-mark.
15. Air Force Falcons (-)
Air Force finished behind Army last weekend but managed to notch a season-high of 387.5, and it was the second-straight meet the Falcons made strides. Their 66.0 on pommel horse wasn’t their only season-high, but it was probably the most significant: They’ve scored as low as 58.15 on the event this season. Air Force is off this weekend.
16. Springfield Pride (+1)
Springfield took a step back this past weekend on the road at Illinois. They are surely looking forward to this weekend back at home where we expect a tightly-contested competition with Washington where they will also be joined by Temple.
17. Washington Huskies (-1)
Washington made big gains in their dual meet against Minnesota last weekend, gaining almost 10 points from the team score they put the week before. Their 375.55 wasn’t a season-high, though, so the Huskies mission this weekend should be to get above 380. They face Springfield and Temple.
