UA out to raise opinions

Arkansas’ gymnastics team believes it is better than the 11th-best team in the nation, and it gets an immediate opportunity to back up its boast.

Arkansas has finished in the top 10 nationally three of the past four years, including a ninth-place finish a year ago, and the Razorbacks return four All-Americans from that team.

“Those are opinions, and opinions are important,” co-coach Mark Cook said of Arkansas’ preseason ranking. “Perception is everything, but we feel our program is stronger than that. Now it’s our job to go out and prove that. We feel we are a top six or seven program in the country.”

The Razorbacks open the season today at the Cancun Classic against a field that includes No. 12 LSU, No. 17 Auburn and No. 19 Arizona. Chances are, the Razorbacks’ scoring marks in this first meet won’t be remembered as the year progresses, but the results are nonetheless important.

“If you have a strong performance the first one, it definitely gets people’s attention,” Cook said. “You want that ‘a-ha’ moment, so it’s important we go down and do well. They understand every meet you compete to win.

“You can’t always control the scoring, but you can control sometimes whether you win or not.”

The Razorbacks have been in training for four months and are itching for some real competition in front of fans and judges. CoCoach Rene Cook said the team has had an excellent offseason and fall training.

“We’re ready for some competition because we’re not going to get any better prepared until we have that competition,” Rene Cook said. “They’ve made their routines now hundreds of times in the gym where they are very comfortable

Mark Cook