The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice

The Daily Utah Chronicle

The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice

The Daily Utah Chronicle

The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice

The Daily Utah Chronicle

Write for Us
Want your voice to be heard? Submit a letter to the editor, send us an op-ed pitch or check out our open positions for the chance to be published by the Daily Utah Chronicle.
@TheChrony
Print Issues
Write for Us
Want your voice to be heard? Submit a letter to the editor, send us an op-ed pitch or check out our open positions for the chance to be published by the Daily Utah Chronicle.
@TheChrony
Print Issues

Gymnastics: After 40 years Greg Marsden announces his retirement

The Red Rocks may have been stunned by Florida in the Super Six on Saturday, but nothing could have prepared them, or their fans, for what came just two days later.

After 40 years and 10 national championships, Utah gymnastics coach Greg Marsden announced his retirement on Monday.

Utah co-coach, and Greg’s wife, Megan Marsden will remain in her current position, and assistant coach Tom Farden will be promoted to co-head coach.

“I told Chris Hill, Megan and Tom Farden before the season began of my plans to retire at the end of the season,” said Greg Marsden in a university release. “I asked them not to say anything because this program is not about me, it’s about our incredible student-athletes, and I wanted all the attention focused on them.”

Greg Marsden that they have been preparing for the transition for the past few years, and feels secure leaving the program in his wife’s and Farden’s hands.

“There is no one reason I chose to leave now. It just felt right. I still love coming to the gym every day and working with these elite student-athletes, coaches and staff, but I feel the other elements of the job are best suited for someone younger,” Greg Marsden said in the release. “I have been incredibly fortunate to spend my entire career here at Utah and to receive support unprecedented anywhere in the country from our administration and our amazing fans. I am especially grateful to Megan, my wife and partner, and to Chris Hill, my friend and mentor.”

Auburn coach, and former Utah assistant Jeff Graba said he wasn’t surprised by the news, saying that he has felt that Greg has been thinking about it for some time.

“I am happy that he went out on his terms,” Graba said. “It’s a sad day for NCAA gymnastics.”

Graba, who coached under the Marsdens from 2006-2010, said he had full confidence that Megan Marsden can carry on her husband’s legacy.

In Greg Marsden’s 40 years at the helm, Utah never missed a national championship meet. His teams won a record 10 national championships, while also finishing as the national runner-ups eight times, with his last one coming this past Saturday. He retires as the winningest coach in collegiate gymnastics history with 1,048 victories. His teams are also responsible for the school’s only two Pac-12 Championships.

“The only way to place a positive spin on Greg Marsden’s retirement is that he is leaving the program in the very capable hands of Megan (Marsden) and Tom Farden,” said Utah director of athletics Dr. Chris Hill. “Megan and Tom are as invested in and passionate about Utah gymnastics as Greg is and they are proven coaches in their own right. Greg Marsden is not only a legendary coach, he has been an incredible advocate for the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, the sport of gymnastics, and most of all, his student-athletes over the past 40 years. His passion, work ethic, vision and relentless drive to be the best have never wavered and I will miss him personally as well as professionally. He has been a great friend, resource and confidant for many years now.”

In 1975, Greg Marsden was given a $1,500 budget to start a gymnastics team, and in six years he won his first national title. That was the first of six straight championships, but Marsden wasn’t content in just winning.

“Greg started out wanting to win championships, and he won many, but then he wanted to make sure the program was covered by the media and that people in the community knew about it,” said Megan Marsden earlier this season.

Through a marketing plan that resembled the ones seen in the NBA, NHL and men’s college basketball, Greg Marsden was able to turn Utah gymnastics into a spectator event.

During the 2015 season, the Red Rocks set an NCAA gymnastics record with an average 14,950, highlighted by a Huntsman Center record crowd of 16,019 — the first time the arena’s attendance has been over 16,000 — against Michigan.

Megan Marsden is in her 31st year on the Utah coaching staff, and has served as co-head coach for the last six seasons. She was named 2014 and 2015 Pac-12 Coach of the Year along with her husband. Before her time on the coaching staff, she was a member of the Utah gymnastics team, where she helped lead the Utes to four national titles from 1981-84.

“I have spent the last 35 years with Greg as an athlete or a coach — not to mention as his spouse — and it is very difficult for me to imagine coming to work every day without him by my side,” said Megan Marsden in the release. “We knew this day would come, given our age difference, and I am grateful that Greg has prepared me well for the rigors of being a head coach. I also appreciate Greg’s vision in hiring Tom Farden and recognizing that Tom and I would be a good team once he retired. Tom shares our belief system, philosophy and coaching style and I am proud to share the title of head coach with him.”

Farden joined the program in 2010 after serving as head coach at Southeast Missouri State, and has worked as the uneven bars coach and recruiting coordinator for the program. On Sunday, Farden earned his first national championship as a coach, when Georgia Dabritz won the uneven bars national title.

Greg Marsden has mentioned numerous times this season, that Farden is the future of Utah gymnastics, and the future has come quite quickly.

“While I enjoyed success as the head coach at Southeast Missouri State, I felt the only way I could reach my full potential was to learn from the best, and Greg and Megan Marsden are the best,” said Farden in the release. “I have admired them and their program for many years and the past five years with them has been a wonderful and rewarding experience. I have developed a love for this program, this school and this community and I want to give back. While I will miss Greg’s guidance and support, I am excited to join Megan as the coach of the University of Utah gymnastics team. It is the best job in college gymnastics and I am grateful to Greg, Megan and Chris Hill for making my dream come true.”

A press conference will be held announcing the changes on Tuesday at 3 p.m. at the Huntsman Center.

[email protected]

@millerjryan

Leave a Comment

Comments (0)

The Daily Utah Chronicle welcomes comments from our community. However, the Daily Utah Chronicle reserves the right to accept or deny user comments. A comment may be denied or removed if any of its content meets one or more of the following criteria: obscenity, profanity, racism, sexism, or hateful content; threats or encouragement of violent or illegal behavior; excessively long, off-topic or repetitive content; the use of threatening language or personal attacks against Chronicle members; posts violating copyright or trademark law; and advertisement or promotion of products, services, entities or individuals. Users who habitually post comments that must be removed may be blocked from commenting. In the case of duplicate or near-identical comments by the same user, only the first submission will be accepted. This includes comments posted across multiple articles. You can read more about our comment policy at https://dailyutahchronicle.com/comment-faqs/.
All The Daily Utah Chronicle Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *