Parallel Perspectives

More Teams, More Opportunities, More Hype — GymACT Is on the Rise

History

For nearly a century, the NCAA entirely ran the collegiate U.S. gymnastics scene. At one point, there were over 250 collegiate men’s gymnastics teams around the nation. Now? That number is down to 15 - just 15 schools in the entire country can say they field a competitive NCAA men’s gymnastics team. 

Insert GymACT

The Gymnastics Association of Collegiate Teams (GymACT) was officially founded in 2018 with six teams, but it’s true roots date back to the last millennium. Arizona State University cut its men’s gymnastics program from the athletic department in 1993, though it couldn’t stop a dedicated group of coaches and athletes from wanting to perform at a high level. The default ‘backup’ option for athletes was to compete as a collegiate club gymnast, though ASU, along with the University of Washington, wanted to compete in stricter and more competitive environments. Longtime ASU coach Scott Barclay was certainly a catalyst in these discussions, and evidently led his way up into forming GymACT and serving as President for its first few seasons. 

Where We Are Now

As we stand today, GymACT has grown to match the NCAA’s number of 15 teams in the league. If current trends follow, this number could soon grow to 20+. One of the most interesting facets to GymACT is their forgiveness and flexibility with team structure. Unlike the NCAA, these teams are not school-funded. The athletes and coaches must raise the funds themselves to field a team and travel around the nation to compete. At the same time, though, not being school-funded allows for some teams to have athletes from multiple different Universities. Some of these teams include the New York Alliance, Bay Area Bandits, or newly-formed Indy-Hio Hyenas. On the contrary, there are teams in the league that do (primarily) operate via one specific college (Washington, Iowa, Minnesota, and of course Arizona State). 

There are pros and cons to both forms of team structure. Obviously, not restricting athletes to a specific college makes it easier to recruit for many reasons. However, the challenge now becomes being able to feel and train like a team. Simply being on one campus or having one gym for everyone to train matters a lot in gymnastics, and without this, some teams suffer. On the other hand, these teams that are based out of one school may find recruiting to be a challenge without NCAA designation. 

2025 Season Overview

The 2025 GymACT season is well underway as competitions are held nearly every weekend in these late winter-early spring months. Here is an updated look at the standings.

*Not competing this season, though GymACT affiliate: Texas Armadillos

*And welcome to the community: GymACT just approved the 16th team yesterday, the NC Airmen! They will begin competing officially next season.

There are clear tiers of teams, rankings, and scores here. At the very top stands Arizona State, with Minnesota joining them as the only teams to hit the 300 mark this season. These teams were the pre-season favorites, and last year’s 1-2 finishers at the National Championships.

Last weekend, the two powerhouses met in the NIU Invitational for a highly-anticipated regular season matchup. Minnesota proved victorious as they earned a massive 306.500: Their season high, and a convenient 0.200 behind Arizona’s best score this season. These teams will keep GymACT fans on the edge of their seats all year long.

Similar to the NCAA, there will be serious battles in GymACT with regards to qualifying to compete at the National Championships. As each team is designated Eastern or Western conference, these Conference Championship meets will matter more than any in GymACT history. This season, GymACT is only allowing the top 4 teams in each conference, plus one wildcard team, to compete for the National Championship. The remaining six teams will compete for the ‘Commissioner Cup,’ an idea derived to protect and promote smaller, newer teams to the league. The Commissioner Cup will be determined by a 3-up, 3-count scoring system. While NCAA now uses a '4-up, 4-count' format — GymACT uses the formerly standard format of '5-up, 4-count'.

As we enter this postseason, keep in mind GymACT hosts their own All-Star competition in an East vs West Conference format. This competition will be held in early April, meaning athletes will team up with their conference foes only a few weeks before battling each other to earn their spot at Nationals. The GymACT All-Star meet will feature the top 5 athletes on each apparatus in each Conference, determined via three rounds of routine video submissions. With everything laid out, let’s look at the teams and where they stand in relation to qualifying for Nationals.

The Locks

Up to this point, a few teams have shown consistent scores often enough to assume them into a top 9 spot. 

• Arizona State (West)

• Minnesota (East)

• Washington (West)

• Indi-Hio (East) 

These are the 4 teams to hit an impressive 296+ team score this season. With peaks as high as this, you have to assume these guys will be ready come Conference Championship day. This leaves 2 spots in each conference, plus one wildcard.

The Probables

Three other teams have eclipsed the 290 mark at least once this season, and should feel relatively safe for their spot in the National Championships. These are the Bay Area Bandits, Temple Owls, and Iowa Hawkeyes. Formerly known as ‘NorCal United’, the Bay Area Bandits rebranded their program and have seemingly taken a step forward. Temple was one of the first members in GymACT, after the University cut its funding towards men’s gymnastics in 2013. This year’s Owls have the fifth highest peak score of the season at an impressive 293.600. Longtime NCAA program Iowa had their GymACT debut season in 2022, and it ended in a national title. Can they repeat the task this season?

The Question Marks

With these spots assumed, there are two spots left to claim a spot in the National Championships. One team from the West, and then the wildcard team from either conference.

In the West remains the Rocky Mountain Mavericks, SC United, and KC United. Rocky Mountain have a comfortable advantage over these two teams, and they even hold a higher ranking than the Bay Area Bandits. It appears SC United and KC United will both battle for a wildcard berth or an attempt to win the Commissioner Cup in the small-team format. 

The wildcard spot will most likely be a team from the East, though SC United is certainly in the mix with a 275.450 under their belt. The other teams in the East are the New York Alliance, Florida Storm, Northern Illinois, and Georgia United. NIU and Florida have both hit 280 in their home meets this season, and NYA have an even greater peak with a 282.100. Georgia United has yet to score above a 270, though recent roster additions may bolster their numbers. 

As a final reminder, these numbers and data only give us an indicator, nothing is guaranteed currently. All qualifying spots are based upon one day of competition. Both the Eastern and Western Conference Championships will be held on April 26, 2025.

...

Written by Aiden Whitehead

Principal Staff Writer for TURN

About Aiden

Hello gymnastics fans! I’m Aiden and I’m super excited to join the team at TURN as the 'Principal Staff Writer'. I began competing gymnastics at the age of six and immediately fell in love with the sport. I am currently in the midst of my senior season as a competitor, serving my third year as a team captain for the Georgia United GymACT team. Last December, I graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor’s degree in Sports Management, with Sports Media Certification as well. I've already acquired a few years of media experience, working a variety of roles with GymACT, Virtius, and Neutral Deductions. In addition to competing, I am an active women’s team coach at Oconee Gymnastics Center, as well as the Technical Director of the Georgia Men’s Gymnastics Judging Association. Evidently — even though I am competing, coaching, and judging — I can never get enough of this sport, so I’m excited to take this new role as well!