When Sara Carver-Milne oversaw Olympic silver medalist Alicia Sacramone’s dual NCAA and elite gymnastics careers in the late 2000s, she was the first to find herself in this unique situation since Kelly Garrison juggled both while at Oklahoma in the late ’80s. Flash forward to the 2023 season, and it would almost feel absurd for an Olympian joining an NCAA team not to at least consider pursuing elite alongside collegiate gymnastics, with Olympic champion Sunisa Lee headlining the push at Auburn.
While Sacramone may have finished her competitive career at Brown in 2007, Carver-Milne’s tenure with the Bears lasted until 2022. During her 21 seasons in Providence, she was named ECAC Had Coach of the Year twice and oversaw every school record being broken. Simply put, Carver-Milne is an Ivy League gymnastics coaching legend, but now she’s looking to make a splash in the big leagues.
The story all started around 2013 when Carver-Milne was hired to help out at an Auburn gymnastics summer camp.
“We’ve known each other enough that I’ve known she was a good fit for the program, but actually coaching alongside her was just confirmation. We typically try to bring in other college coaches to our camps just so that we can get some exposure for our campers, and she was one of those,” Auburn head coach Jeff Graba said.
In fact, Graba had tried to recruit Carver-Milne into her current position before the 2023 season, but she declined due to family responsibilities. Flash forward to 2022, and things were a little bit different. As Carver-Milne put it, “He gave me a call when Ashley [Johnston] announced she was leaving and asked me if I was on contract. I said coincidentally, I’m in the midst of getting a new contract from Brown, and he said, don’t sign anything, I’m going to call your athletic director.”
We know what happened next. Coming from Brown, and even just moving from Rhode Island to Alabama was a big change in it of itself. Carver-Milne was incredibly successful at Brown, but what was less visible was all of the work she was doing behind the scenes.
“I kind of played every role at Brown,” she said. “I started there when I was in my mid-20s and kind of had to figure things out on my own. I’ve written stories for our meets, I’ve done the marketing, I’ve recruited with a different budget, I’ve handled discussions with admissions and financial aid and really just had to be involved in every single aspect of the program.”
In that way, Auburn was a big change for the new associate head coach. Gone were the days of having to do really anything outside the job description of an associate head coach. However, despite the many differences between the roles, there are similarities. “You’re still the one that’s got to look out for your own program, and you still have to work incredibly hard every day and develop each of your athletes.”
Carver-Milne also noted the dedication of the student-athletes at Auburn, citing a story about Olivia Hollingsworth taking the MCAT the day before the Tigers’ meet against Florida. Perhaps no one, however, has been as dedicated to the Auburn program over the last five years as Derrian Gobourne. It’s always hard for someone to make their way into an already established team culture, but according to Gobourne, Carver-Milne faced no struggles.
“I would describe our team culture as supportive, and with Sara coming into something new, she’s been able to adapt and be supportive of us,” Gobourne said.
Carver-Milne also looks back on her experience stepping into Auburn’s gym for the first time. “It’s a very, very cool team. You wouldn’t know walking in the first day that they had just gone to the final four.”
Carver-Milne of course also brings with her the experience of coaching an athlete juggling elite and college competition, not something many coaches around the country can tout on their resume.
“Before Alicia came to Brown, her coaches and I had a good relationship, and that made the transition seamless,” she said. “Suni’s coaches have been equally welcoming and understand that we all share the same goal for her. We want to help her get to another Olympics.”
It seems as if Carver-Milne was somewhat of a perfect storm for Auburn, coming in with just the right combination of coaching experience, a positive attitude and pure skill that was needed to help build on the Tigers’ most successful season yet. Carver-Milne wasn’t shy about sharing the team’s goals moving forward either: win an SEC championship.
With the way the 2023 season started, there’s no time like the present, and no better staff to lead Auburn to this goal and beyond.
READ THIS NEXT: League Rules, Forgotten Leotards and Logistics Galore—What It’s Like to Travel With Rutgers
Live blog by Ian LeWarn
Like what you see? Consider donating to support our efforts throughout the year! [wpedon id=”13158″]
Sara was the worst coach I ever had. My experience at Brown with her was miserable. Calling her a legend has got to be the most invalidating, offensive comment I’ve ever seen. Don’t know how she managed to fool everyone.
True as another former brown gymnast this article is outrageous.
I would like to second Rachel’s comment. Sara was awful during my time at Brown. She made my experience so miserable that I ended hating the sport altogether.
I don’t wish to taint the name of a woman who has dedicated years of her life to the sport of gymnastics, but this article is a complete misrepresentation of who she is. Sara was an incompetent coach who lacked empathy for her athletes, at least during my time at Brown. I hope she flourishes at Auburn but we shouldn’t forget the damage she did at Brown.
I echo the above comments. Sara was the worst coach I ever had. I had countless teammates quit because she bullied them out of the sport. She weaponized athletes’ mental health and encouraged duplicity and rewarded gossip. This article is such a gross misrepresentation. If you want Suni (or ay gymnast for that matter) to stay safe and healthy, keep Sara far away from her.