We can all name those gymnasts who became legends in their programs’ histories for the impact they made there. These gymnasts are on track to do the same. Some will fill a hole or weakness for their team, and some are so good that they have the potential to single-handedly bring the team out of the basement, doing so as their programs’ first-ever five-star. Regardless, these gymnasts are expected to alter their teams for the better in huge ways.
Sophia Diaz, Michigan
Former five-star recruit Diaz graduated high school a year early to join Bev Plocki’s 2025 squad. With a freshman class already six gymnasts deep, the fact that she could do so indicates just how impactful she is expected to be in Ann Arbor from day one. Diaz shined throughout her developmental career, winning titles in the all-around and vault (the latter with a 10.0 score) at the 2024 national championships. As has been well-known since program definers Sierra Brooks and Gabby Wilson graduated, voids in the Wolverines’ lineups are abundant in 2025, and while more freshmen than just her will need to contribute, Diaz seems like the standard-bearer in waiting.
Joscelyn Roberson, Arkansas
Roberson has flown under the radar in Razorback pre-season training clips due to her participation in Simone Biles’s GOAT tour and resulting absence from the gym. But when the Olympic alternate returns to Fayetteville and makes her Bud Walton Arena debut, she’ll quickly make the impact fans have expected of her since her rise in the elite scene earlier this quad. That’s due not just to her talent and ability to contribute from the start, but also her stature; the last time such a recognizable star joined the team was arguably when head coach Jordyn Wieber arrived in 2019. Her star power alone will continue to put the Razorbacks even more on the map than they have been since then.
Madison Gustitus, San Jose State
San Jose State has been on the rise for years now, but Gustitus suiting up as a Spartan for the first time will be history as she is the program’s first-ever five-star recruit. A product of vaunted developmental club Legacy Elite in Illinois, it says a lot about the Spartans that they could bring Gustitus to San Jose, where most recruits come from the West Coast. Gustitus particularly shines on beam, where she tied for first place with a 9.750 at nationals 2024, but will compete for spots late in every lineup from day one.
JerQuavia Henderson, Iowa
The lone non-freshman on this list, Henderson was a star in the seasons before her year-long break from NCAA competition in 2024, but she now returns to an Iowa team that looks completely different than the ones she previously competed on. Now under the leadership of former Lindenwood and Washington head coach Jen Llewellyn, the Hawkeyes are looking to bounce back from a 2024 season that was turbulent both on and off the competition floor. Their freshman class of three Canadian elites will play a big part in helping the team do so, but it’s beloved veteran Henderson who has the potential to truly lead the team in her swan song season.
Chloe Cho, Illinois
Cho fell just one point short of a five-star rating in our recruit evaluations, but her impact at Illinois may be bigger than any of the other five-stars going to top programs. She boasts an elite background unlike that of any current or former Illini; that experience alone will be a huge confidence boost for her team. Barring injury, she could easily contend for lineup spots on all four events, but her impact will be felt the most on the leg events; Cho typically competes three D-rated or higher passes on floor, including a college-ready double layout. The Illini’s freshman class is strong overall, but Cho’s elite caliber helps push the class and team as a whole to hopes of reaching the top of the Big Ten once again.
Cleante Théorêt, New Hampshire
A Canadian elite, Théorêt was an exciting get for New Hampshire, becoming the program’s highest-rated recruit since these rankings began. Her eye-catching gymnastics will quickly earn fans in Durham; she has become known for finishing acrobatic skills into arabesque, training it out of a front toss, a front aerial, and a side aerial. On top of her unique beam skills, she is also a standout on floor, earning the “Master of Floor Artistry” award at the 2024 Provincial Championships. She is sure to bring the requisite performance quality on all four events for the Wildcats.
Bailey Upton, Texas Woman’s
Texas Woman’s welcomes its first pair of rated recruits to Denton in 2025 including former four-star Upton. Upton has the potential to make starting lineups in all four events for the Pioneers, especially their two weakest events: beam and floor. At nationals in 2024, Upton recorded career highs to place in the top five on both events and showed college-ready scores on them both; in particular, the 9.800 she achieved on floor would have placed in the top 10 at the 2024 USAG National Championships. The Pioneers will certainly welcome that addition to lineups one year later.
Rylee Guevara, Ohio State
Ohio State has been bringing in talented classes for several seasons now, but Guevara still manages to stand out as a truly special recruit, in part because of how much she has improved as of late and how much better she could continue to get. Like fellow former five-star and two-time first-team All Big Ten pick Payton Harris, Guevera boasts a Yurchenko one and a half that will pack a punch at the end of the lineup, and her national title-winning floor routine is just as strong; but really, she has no weak event, placing in the top ten in all of them at 2024 nationals. If she replicates the confidence she displayed as a level 10 in the NCAA, the Buckeyes are in it for a special four years with Guevera.
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Article by Katherine Weaver and Aaron Doyle
