Utah State Gymnastics Announces Assistant Coaches

Utah State University head gymnastics coach Jeff Richards has announced the hiring of Dayna Smart-Allen and Josh Nilson to his staff. Smart-Allen will be the full-time assistant, while Nilson will be a student assistant.

A native of Sandy, Utah, Smart-Allen, who just finished a standout career at BYU, earned her bachelor's degree in fitness and wellness from BYU and is currently pursuing her master's degree in exercise science health promotion. She was a two-year team captain for the Cougars, as well as earning BYU student-athlete academic center scholar-athlete awards from 2003-05. She was also the recipient of the Leona Holbrook Spirit of Sport award.

 

Last season, Smart-Allen won seven individual titles, including three on beam and two each on vault and floor. She logged a career-best 9.9 on vault and scored season-highs on beam and floor with a 9.875 on each. Smart-Allen qualified for the NCAA Northeast Regional Championships, where she tied for 10th on beam (9.825) and placed 14th on vault (9.750), helping BYU to a fifth-place finish.

 

Smart-Allen trained at Olympus Gymnastics, finishing sixth in the all-around at Junior Olympic Nationals in 2002. She was on the Region 1 Junior Olympic National team four times as well as on the Regional Team that took first at the Junior Olympic Nationals in 2000 and 2002. She also competed in Russia in the summer of 2003 as part of the Moscow-Utah Youth Games.

 

"Dayna was a great gymnast at BYU. She had a great career there," Richards said. "She came from a very experienced and a very tough gym at Mary Wright's Olympus Gymnastics Club, so she brings her own wealth of knowledge and discipline to that aspect. She was a tenacious competitor at BYU, posting some of the highest scores all-time for them on vault, beam and floor. She brings a real competitiveness to the team."

 

Smart-Allen's father, Eric Smart, is a 1979 Utah State graduate and was ASUSU President in the 1978-79 school year. She is married to Jase Allen.

 

Nilson, a Logan, Utah, native, has been a spotter and helper for the Aggie gymnastics team the past three years. He also currently coaches at Sports Academy, currently in his second year there, after coaching with the USU Tytans gymnastics program for the previous three years. Nilson competed as a Level 10 gymnast for the past two years.

 

"Josh is very talented; I really like what I've seen out of him thus far," Richards said. "He's got a really good knowledge of all the events, and I think he brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to our program."

 

Nilson is the younger brother of former USU assistant gymnastics coach Ben Nilson, who coached the Aggies from 2003-07.

 

Utah State finished last season with a 6-18 overall and 2-6 Western Athletic Conference record, finishing fifth at the WAC Championships meet. While USU did not qualify as a team to the NCAA North Central Regional Gymnastics meet, the Aggies sent six individuals. The Aggies, who were ranked No. 38 in the final rankings, return six letterwinners, including four all-WAC honorees.

 

Utah State opens the 2008-09 season on Dec. 6 with the Blue and White Exhibition, before officially competing at Kentucky on Friday, Jan. 9. USU's home opener is Friday, Jan. 16, against Central Michigan.