University of Georgia Athletics
Q&A With Coach Danna Durante
May 12, 2015 | Gymnastics
GeorgiaDogs.com recently had a chance to sit down with Georgia head gymnastics coach Danna Durante to discuss the summer ahead and the 2016 season. Durante, who just completed her third season as Georgia's coach, was recently named one of the nation's top-10 head coaches by CollegeAD.com.
GeorgiaDogs.com: Since the season ended about three weeks ago, what has been on your agenda, and what are some of the things you'll be doing going forward into the summer?
Danna Durante: "Recruiting is always on the agenda. I've been traveling, and we have JO Nationals coming up and the elite season is just beginning. While the JO athletes are winding down their season, the elite athletes are just getting started. So there's been a good amount of travel watching those competitions and seeing different recruits and future Gymdogs. We've also laid together the plans for the summer for our current team and their goals, and we've looked at upgrades and changes in skills."
GeorgiaDogs.com: What has been the general feeling around the gym over these last few weeks?
Danna Durante: "We are thankful for the lessons from the 2015 season, and we are excited about what's in front of us. We see a great deal of drive and motivation and excitement about what the future holds for us. We have some great athletes coming in. It's one thing for the staff to be excited, but it's been heavily driven by the team, so we're thrilled about that. The seniors coming were all first team All-Americans this past season, and they want to do more. Brandie Jay has been working beam, and Morgan Reynolds, who will be a junior, has been working bars. They aren't satisfied and they want more, and that always bodes well for the season. If the team wants more and is driven and motivated, it makes our jobs as coaches much easier."
GeorgiaDogs.com: Are summer workouts more about basics and fundamentals, or is there more of a focus on developing new skills?
Danna Durante: "I think it's both. Each athlete is different, and it is at their request. Even two days after Nationals, I would say 90 percent of the returnees were in the gym working on skills they want to compete next year that they didn't compete this year. For some it's about going back to the basics, but those things always make the skills better, so it's easier to upgrade. I don't think you can ever get away from basics or fundamentals or strength in any sport. Those are things you have to have year-round. The summer is a time where you must have a good balance between spending time on that while also focusing on what they want to do next year. It's important for them to have a plan of what they want to accomplish each day. The coaches are there for safety, and otherwise the drive and the motivation belongs to them to be in there everyday. Fundamentals are important, but looking at new things that they want to compete next year is also very important. We don't have time to get those in August if they haven't already mastered them."
GeorgiaDogs.com: Many people may not know that you and new Florida head coach Jenny Rowland and your families are very close. How did you get to know her?
Danna Durante: "We have been dear friends for a very long time. She moved from Florida back in the early 80's to train at my gym in Oklahoma and lived with me for a while. I had forgotten about that, but she reminded me of it. We went to middle school together, high school together and college together. We were roommates in college and we were in each other's weddings. We've been through a lot of life together. She was an assistant at Oklahoma when I was an assistant at Nebraska, so we competed against each other in the Big 12. She is fiercely competitive, as am I, and I know we'll both work hard to be our very best. Beyond that we are dear friends and want the best for each other and our families."
GeorgiaDogs.com: The complete 2016 schedule won't be released until later this summer, but what are some of the meets that you think will be exciting for the fans?
Danna Durante: "We probably have one of the toughest schedules in the country again. At home, we'll have Stanford, Florida, LSU, Auburn and Oklahoma. On the road we'll see Michigan, UCLA, Alabama, Utah, Kentucky, Missouri and Arkansas. It's a great home schedule. Every single team coming in was in the top-10 and four were in the top-six. It's going to be a great schedule for our fans."
