Clemson Gymnastics Is Rewriting Its Record Books — and the Country Is Noticing
Three of the five best team scores in program history. The nation's biggest jump on bars. A 100,000th fan milestone. This is not a rebuilding story. This is a rising one.
Littlejohn Coliseum • Clemson, S.C. • 2026 NCAA Gymnastics Season
Clemson Gymnastics | Clemson Athletics
CLEMSON, S.C. — Pull up the Clemson gymnastics record books right now and you will find a program quietly — and not so quietly anymore — rewriting history in real time.
In its first season under Co-Head Coaches Justin Howell and Liz Crandall-Howell, Clemson has already recorded three of the program's five highest scores ever, moved to 14th in the national NQS ranking — the highest in program history — and posted a season-high 197.025 that ranks as its third-best performance ever. And the season is not over yet.
This is what happens when a young program gets the right leaders at the right moment. Clemson gymnastics is not the same team it was twelve months ago. The evidence is everywhere.
THE HOWELL EFFECT IS REAL
When Clemson brought in Justin Howell and Liz Crandall-Howell from Cal in May 2025, the gymnastics world paid attention. The pair had spent 13 seasons leading Cal to seven top-ten finishes and 12 NCAA appearances before making the move across the country to lead the Tiger program. They arrived as the reigning ACC Coaches of the Year. They arrived with a championship blueprint.
The results in Year 1 at Clemson speak for themselves. Clemson's 21-spot jump on bars from 2025 is the biggest jump nationally. The program's 20-spot jump on beam is the second-best nationally. Through eight meets, 67.2% of all routines have been scored at 9.800 or above.
These are not flukes. These are the fingerprints of elite coaching reshaping a program from the inside out.
THE PLAYERS DELIVERING THE NUMBERS
Behind every great coaching staff is a group of athletes executing the vision — and Clemson has those players.
Brie Clark has won the floor exercise title in every single one of her eight appearances in 2026, carries a 9.935 NQS that ranks fifth in the nation on floor, and scored a career-best 9.975 in her most recent outing. She is not just one of the best floor workers in the ACC. She is one of the best in the country.
Ella Cesario posted the third-best all-around score in program history with a 39.475 at Pitt, and is averaging a 9.827 across 27 routines in 2026. Tara Walsh has been a Swiss Army knife contributor, competing in 24 events with 20 scored at 9.800 or above, including five vault titles in 2026.
And freshman Emma Malewski — a 2022 European beam champion representing Germany — earned her first collegiate event title with a 9.900 on bars at Pitt, announcing herself on the national stage in emphatic fashion.
A PROGRAM THE COUNTRY IS PAYING ATTENTION TO
Through six meets, Clemson led the nation in total attendance with 29,297 fans, ranking eighth nationally at 7,324 fans per meet. The program welcomed its 100,000th all-time fan in just its 15th-ever home meet. In a building that sells out and a program that keeps climbing — the momentum is undeniable.
Clemson gymnastics is not sneaking up on anyone anymore. They are right there in the conversation. And if this trajectory holds through the ACC Championship and into the NCAA Tournament, Tigertown might be celebrating something it has never celebrated before.
The record books are being rewritten. The country is watching. And the best may still be ahead.
2026 NCAA Gymnastics Season | Littlejohn Coliseum, Clemson, S.C. | Program Record: 197.025
