ARMY
Head coach Doug Van Everen
Opening statement
¡°We are happy to be here. This is our third trip to the NCAA Championships. It was a lot of fun qualifying again this year. The pressure is on.¡±

What was it like to make it to Nationals this year?
¡°It was pretty fun. We are in a weird situation where typically there is five teams fighting for two spots. I felt good because we had met them (Illinois-Chicago) in Chicago in a neutral gym and we beat them. They beat us at the conference level, but our national average was just a little bit higher.¡±

CALIFORNIA
Head coach Barry Weiner
Opening statement
¡°We¡¯re excited to be here. We¡¯ve suffered some setbacks through the year, I guess like everybody else. We¡¯re ready and it¡¯s our goal to advance to the second day and give ourselves a chance to win the national championship.¡±

Will Tyler Block be back?
¡°No, Tyler was lost. He stuck the landing but as he went down he tore his ACL.¡±

ILLINOIS
Head coach Yoshi Hayasaki
Opening statement
¡°We¡¯re very excited to be here. We have a young team with no seniors. We hope to make to the final six on the final day.¡±

IOWA
Head coach Tom Dunn
Opening statement
¡°We are very happy to be here. We struggled throughout the season, but we are here. This is the high point of our season.¡±

MICHIGAN
Head coach Kurt Golder
Opening statement
¡°We are very well prepared. We have been waiting for this event. We were out here earlier this year. There was a great turnout and a great crowd. We won the competition and we hope to do that again.¡±

Thoughts on preparation for the NCAA Championships? ¡°We¡¯ve been very focused all year. At the beginning of this year, we went against No. 2 Penn State. After that stretch of competitions on the road and at home, the guys were tired, and I don¡¯t think we have recovered from that yet. But the men are reenergized and focused for this.¡±

MINNESOTA
Head coach Mike Burns
Opening statement
¡°We are extremely excited to be here. The second session is going to be extremely challenging to get out of to the second night. Obviously Oklahoma and Penn State are top teams. California, Nebraska and Temple will be a great challenge for us to make it into the top three. It¡¯s been a long time since Minnesota has been in the finals. We¡¯re looking forward to taking our program back to the next level it has been at in the past. We¡¯re excited to be here. Our guys are experiencing good health at this point in the season. So we¡¯re ready to go.¡±

What did hosting the Big Ten Championships mean to you?
¡°It gives our team confidence. We have focused all our energy and efforts to be here.¡±

Kevin Green
What did hosting the Big Ten Championships mean to you?
¡°I think it boosted our confidence. The fans were great. It was a blast.¡±

NEBRASKA
Head coach Francis Allen
Opening statement
¡°We¡¯re healthy also. We¡¯re happy to be here.¡±

You have won eight National Championships. What¡¯s different about this team?
¡°We were pretty banged up. We are healthier now. By the time you get here, the guys are ready. We are excited about it. We are trying to curb our enthusiasm. We want to get them hyped up to a certain level and then maintain that.¡±

OHIO STATE
Head coach Miles Avery
Opening statement
¡°This is such an exciting competition for these young men. This is more exciting than the Olympics or World Championships. You¡¯ll see why. It¡¯s great for a college coach to be at the NCAA Championships. We hope to do very well¡±

Have you noticed anything different this year compared to last year where you did not make it out of the qualifying session?
¡°We try to stay healthy and rested for the second session. For us, the end goal is to not finish fourth. The afternoon session is tough. The guys have to get up earlier. We want it to be another 25 years before we don¡¯t qualify again.¡±

You¡¯ve won the Big Ten Championships the past three years. How do you get over that hump at Nationals?
¡°It comes down to preparation. We as a coaching staff sat down and decided we needed to do something really different. How are we going to do even better at the end of the year? They have done a great job throughout the season getting better.¡±

How are the NCAA Championships more exciting than competing internationally?
¡°It is the atmosphere. So much of it is the regimen. The guys train separately for something like the Olympics or the World Championships. These guys for four years are together all the time and it means so much to them. They train year round and spend all their time together. As a team it doesn¡¯t mean as much. Yes, you want to win for your country. You have the pride. But with the NCAA Championships, it means more to these young men. They are brothers. There is nothing like it.¡±

OKLAHOMA
Head coach Mark Williams
Opening statement
¡°We¡¯re excited to be here. It¡¯s a great environment with unbelievable floor. It is a true intimate setting. The goal is to advance to Friday night.¡±

What would it be like to win three in a row?
¡°We want to stay on top. Every year is different. We have had injuries this year. It¡¯s a different feeling this year but we have all experienced that. Winning three in a row would be awfully nice but we have to earn it.¡±

PENN STATE
Head coach Randy Jepson
Opening statement
¡°Obviously to host the national championship is a very exciting privilege. Our guys have been very excited to be home and compete here at Penn State. We have a number of alums coming back and they¡¯re excited for the event as well. Mike (Burns) mentioned competing here. The last time Oklahoma competed on that floor, they won a national championship. We also have some great memories of Rec Hall. We¡¯re hoping to create another one.¡±

In terms of preparation and distractions, how big of a difference is it to be hosting the event?
¡°I think for our team it is not that big of a distraction. They are used to this atmosphere. I know for me it has been very distracting. I have had a lot to do, and I have a great staff.¡±

Compare the Bryce Jordan Center to Rec Hall.
¡°It¡¯s great to have fans right on top of you. Hands down, Rec Hall is a better atmosphere. We are talking about World Class Gymnastics. We have guys who have competed internationally.¡±

Matt Cohen, Sr.
In terms of preparation and distractions, how big of difference is it to be hosting the event?
¡°It is not a distraction for our team. We have had plenty of home meets and we know what this crowd is like. We know what it is like to compete at Rec Hall under pressure. I think everyone had gotten into a routine for our home meets. We are excited.¡±

STANFORD
Head coach Thom Glielmi
Opening statement
¡°We¡¯re excited to be here. Like Miles [Avery] was saying, this is the most exciting competition in gymnastics. There is no competition like this. The energy, the crowd, it¡¯s great. We are glad to be here.¡±

How are the NCAA Championships more exciting than competing internationally?
¡°The crowd is the big difference. Obviously, every University has their fans but the fans are crazy. It¡¯s a great atmosphere with a lot of energy. You don¡¯t see this internationally. I always tell the team you are going to love this and it is the best meet you will attend.¡±

David Sender, Jr.
How are the NCAA Championships more exciting than competing internationally?
¡°I competed last year internationally. The biggest thing I noticed was the passion within the athletes. You have six teams competing at a time. Each team brings its own energy. The athletes at the NCAAs have a passion for their routines. The guys were well-seasoned athletes and it was like business for them to do their routines. There is a lot of emotion and passion within the athletes here.¡±

TEMPLE
Head coach Fred Turoff
Opening statement
¡°We are pleased to be here as a team. We won our conference championships, which we hosted. Health wise, we have one guy (Luke Vexler) who spent three days in the hospital. Other than that we are in good shape and looking forward to a great competition.¡±