Recruiting Coup, Blockbuster Schedule Puts Hogs in Spotlight as Season Looms

Jordyn Wieber has turned Arkansas Razorbacks into national power, fitting for loaded SEC

University of Arkansas Razorbacks gymnast Frankie Price performs on floor exercise during the 2024 NCAA Women's National Gymnastics Semifinals at Dickies Arena. / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Lost in all the haze of the end of football season, the heart of early season basketball and everything that comes with national signing day and the opening of the transfer portal is a recruiting and scheduling coup that has been served up by Razorbacks gymnastics coach Jordyn Wieber.

It's been an insane seven months for the program. After hosting an NCAA regional, Arkansas advanced to the National Collegiate Women's Gymnastics Championships in Forth Worth, Texas late last April, watched as current freshman Joscelyn Roberson made the U.S. Olympic team as an alternate, and then closed out the offseason just before Thanksgiving by signing the nation's No. 2 recruiting class for 2025.

The Razorbacks landed 5-star signees Avalon Campbell, Allison Cucci and Avery King, along with high 4-stars Addison Bare and Bradley Burton.

That's a huge deal not only for the program, but for Arkansas athletics as a whole. While football, basketball and baseball draw much of the attention across the Southeastern Conference, the league has not only taken over the sport of women's gymnastics, recent marketing efforts have made it the second biggest sport for large crowds at some of its member schools.

Since 2005, 17 teams that currently call the SEC home have claimed the national championship, including reigning champion LSU, Oklahoma, Alabama, Georgia and Florida, not to mention 13 runners-up over that span. Yet, here's Arkansas, the little upstart Wieber has quietly willed into a budding national power, stealing spotlight in the recruiting rankings.

There's a lot for Wieber to sell recruits. First and foremost is the chance to be coached by one of the sport's most famous Olympic gold medalists, but there's also exposure the SEC has provided by matching up powerhouse programs each Friday night in televised showdowns in front of large rowdy crowds that have created numerous household names in the sport, including LSU's Haleigh Bryant and the biggest brand in all of college NIL, Oliva Dunne.

Gymnastics has grown exponentially in popularity in Northwest Arkansas. The Gymbacks regularly pack out Barnhill Arena and have had to move over to Bud Walton Arena at times.

If the schedule reads accurately that will be the case permanently this year. Arkansas will host a dream schedule for its home fans that will draw large crowds.

Alabama, Florida and LSU will all come to Bud Walton Arena. That's the equivalent of Oregon, Georgia and Notre Dame coming to Razorback Stadium in football this past season.

In addition to a star-studded home schedule, Arkansas will begin the season in nearby Oklahoma City in the Sprouts Farmer's Market Collegiate Quad where all 12 teams are coming off appearances in the national tournament, including five of the final eight and all of the Top 4.

The Arkansas quad will feature Kentucky, Ohio State and UCLA, where Wieber was the team manager as an undergraduate for three seasons, an assistant coach her senior year and the following two years prior to coming to Arkansas to be head coach at age 23 in 2019.

The Razorbacks will have a Gymbacks Preview on Sunday, Dec. 15. Then the team will have roughly a month spread across holiday breaks to get ready for the opener in OKC at the Spout's Quad meet.

Session 2, the afternoon slot, featuring LSU, Oklahoma, Cal and Utah will be on ABC while the evening session with Arkansas will be on an ESPN network yet to be determined.

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