Courtesy of AU Athletics/Kendra Willard  

The 2021 Auburn gymnastics team will open the year at No. 14, the Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association announced Thursday.

“It is exciting to see that our competitors believe we will be even more competitive this year after a crazy offseason and the departure of a large senior class,” said Head Coach Jeff Graba. “I feel very good about our team this year and we are very much looking forward to finally competing again after such an abrupt end to the 2020 season.”

Two Southeastern Conference teams are ranked in the top 5, while all eight schools are among the top 20. Defending SEC champion Florida is on top of the list at No. 1, while LSU ranks No. 3. Alabama stands at No. 6 with Georgia (No. 10), Kentucky (No. 12), Arkansas (No. 15) and Missouri (No. 16) all being among the top programs nationally.

The 2021 regular season will feature an all-SEC schedule, seeing the Tigers face a top-25 team each week.

Auburn kicks off the 2021 campaign against the top-ranked Gators as the Tigers host Florida in Auburn Arena, Jan. 8. The meet is set for 7 p.m. CST and information on attendance will be announced at a later date.

For the latest on Auburn Gymnastics, follow @AuburnGym on Twitter and visit the team’s Facebook page at facebook.com/AuburnGym.