A Perfect Pairing: Jenny Rowland and Gator Gymnastics
Saturday, May 9, 2015 | Gymnastics, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Jenny Rowland used to be a gymnast. A very good one.
Back then her name was Jenny Ester.
She was a member of the U.S. National Team for most of her teenage years. She was part of the 1989 U.S. World Championship team.
In college, she was an All-American on the uneven bars at Arizona State. She even won the all-around title when the Gators traveled to face the Sun Devils in 1993.
Much of Rowland's life has revolved around gymnastics, the last five years as an assistant coach, and later as associate head coach, at Auburn.
There's more. Lots more.
Between a stint as an assistant coach at Oklahoma and her run at Auburn, Rowland served as a high-level gymnastics judge at national and international meets.
Yeah, she even married a gymnast, former Oklahoma All-American Garon Rowland. Oh, and she once worked for a gymnast at 1984 Olympian Bart Connor's Academy as an instructor for Elite-level gymnasts.
If all that's not enough, there was the time Rowland spent nearly three months in Phoenix for a role in a gymnastics movie. She was 11, had braces, and starred in some of the action scenes in the film “American Anthem.”
The one thing Rowland has not done is run her own program.
Until now.
Florida Athletic Director Jeremy Foley announced the hiring of the 40-year-old Rowland on Saturday to replace Rhonda Faehn. Rowland is the seventh head coach in the program's 43-year history.
Rowland's impressive background made a favorable impression on Foley and his administrative staff to entrust her to continue Florida's success among the nation's best. Faehn also was a huge advocate for Rowland to replace her.
Rowland only enhanced her bid for the job during a visit to town this week to meet her potential future.
"I'm a competitor,'' Rowland said on a conference call Saturday afternoon. "I"m always pushing to strive and achieve for greatness. That desire I have is why I started in this field. I look forward to continue to share those dreams and expectations with all the athletes."
That is what Foley wanted to hear. Rowland isn't afraid of a hefty challenge.
In 13 seasons under Faehn, who announced her resignation April 24 to become senior vice president of USA Gymnastics, Florida won the last three national championships.
Now it's Rowland's turn to take the Mercedes for a spin.
“She knows what it's like to be a competitor on the national, international and collegiate stages,'' Foley said. “She has what it takes to be a successful recruiter as she's built relationships with so many in the gymnastics world.”
Rowland inherits a program that is built for success, led by returning senior Bridget Sloan, arguably the best college gymnast performing today.
It's no accident that Sloan's arrival three years ago elevated the Gators into another stratosphere.
So close for so long, the Gators won their first title in 2013, repeated in '14 as co-champions with Oklahoma, and last month finished in dramatic fashion to edge Utah for a three-peat.
Florida is one of only six women's programs that can claim a national title in gymnastics, and two of those (Georgia and Alabama) are programs Rowland is very familiar with during her time in the SEC.
Rowland not only arrives highly recommended, but with recent credentials to back up her supporters.
She was named co-National Assistant Coach of the Year this season as Auburn qualified for the Super Six for the first time in 22 years.
In this case, Auburn's loss is clearly Florida's gain.
“Jenny is one of the top coaches in the country,'' Auburn head coach Jeff Graba said in 2013 when he promoted Rowland to associate head coach. “I think it's important to have Jenny in this role as we enter the next phase of our program.”
She proved ready for the job. And that next phase.
Next up, Rowland takes over a Florida team that loses four seniors but returns Sloan and a talented core, highlighted by upperclassmen Bridgette Caquatto and Claire Boyce, and underclassmen Kennedy Baker and Alex McMurtry.
The Gators will open next season in the national title conversation as they have the past several ones.
Rowland undoubtedly has big pumps to fill in Faehn, who took over the Gators in May of 2002 and elevated the Florida job into a winning lotto ticket.
The intangibles are in place, too.
The Gators have one of the most rabid fan bases in the country, turning the O'Connell Center into the place to be on Friday nights in early spring.
The Gators practice in a new studio that was built three years ago and their recent success has done nothing but help recruiting.
"Everything that Florida has to offer the student-athletes, I'm looking forward to being able to utilize that support and continue a storied program,'' Rowland said. "Every season is a definitely a new story, and I look forward to building the storylines. My expectations are definitely winning a national title."
The opening drew ample interest from around the country. But in the end, Foley found Faehn's replacement just a state away.
This is a marriage that has all the ingredients to make Rowland's first time as a head coach one well worth the wait.
