AUBURN, Ala. – Ryan Roberts has been named the next Auburn gymnastics head coach, athletics director John Cohen announced Tuesday. Roberts brings a wealth of Southeastern Conference experience to the Plains, having spent the past eight seasons coaching within in the league. That includes the past two years as co-head coach at Georgia.
“With his demonstrated excellence in recruiting and developing high-level SEC gymnasts, Ryan Roberts is the ideal person to lead Auburn’s gymnastics program,” Cohen said. “Ryan’s professional experience makes him a great fit for Auburn. We welcome Ryan, Hanne and their family to the Plains.”
Prior to being appointed co-head coach at Georgia, Roberts spent two years as an assistant coach with the Bulldogs and four years at Alabama. He played a major role in recruiting as his teams signed top five recruiting classes four times, including Georgia’s No. 1 signing class in 2023 and the No. 2 class in November of this academic year.
“I want to thank President Roberts, John Cohen and the search committee for this incredible opportunity and the trust to guide this program,” Roberts said. “My family and I are thrilled to now be a part of the Auburn Family and have the chance to invest in this incredible community. I am very much looking forward to leading this team and working with these student-athletes and can’t wait to get to work. War Eagle!”
Roberts was promoted to co-head coach at Georgia in April 2025 and since then, the Bulldogs have returned to prominence in the collegiate gymnastics world. This past season, Georgia secured the No. 6 overall national seed and reached the 2026 NCAA National Championship Semifinal for the first time since 2019, finishing sixth overall and marking the program’s best finish since 2016.
In addition, the Bulldogs had four regular season All-Americans and had five gymnasts combine for seven NCAA All-America recognitions at the end of the national semifinals. The team’s 11 combined All-America honors were the most since 2014. Nine Bulldogs were named All-SEC and three were placed on the All-SEC Freshman team.
The Bulldogs finished fifth at the 2026 SEC Championship with a 197.450, their best team score at the conference meet since 2004 and best overall finish since 2019.
Georgia eclipsed a 198+ score in March for the first time in the regular season since 2009. The team recorded a 197 or better in 15 meets, marking the first time ever in program history a Bulldog team had nine or more 197+ or better in a single season.
In his first year as co-head coach in 2025, Roberts and the GymDogs secured a national seed in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019. The program recorded six consecutive meets with a 197 or higher and two Bulldogs secured First Team All-American accolades.
As an assistant for Georgia, Roberts coached the bars group, which saw tremendous improvement over two years. He also coached SEC Freshman of the Year Lily Smith to four All-American honors in 2024 and combined for eight All-SEC recognitions between 2023 and 2024.
Prior to his time in Athens, Roberts spent four seasons as an assistant at Alabama. Highlighting his time at Tuscaloosa was the 2021 Crimson Tide team that captured the SEC Championship and a No. 5 national ranking.
In addition, he was named WCGA Region 1 Assistant Coach of the Year in 2020 and 2021 as part of the Alabama staff.
In 2022, Alabama finished seventh nationally and second at the SEC Championship and the team had three scores of 198+. The 2021 season saw the program win its 10th SEC title and finish fifth at the national championship. Roberts coached the 2021 SEC Gymnast of the Year and Honda Award finalist Luisa Blanco. She and Lexi Graber each captured individual national titles on beam and floor, respectively, and four Alabama gymnasts were named All-Americans.
On top of his coaching responsibilities at Alabama, Roberts also earned a Master of Business Administration in 2021.
Roberts went to Alabama after five years with the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy (WOGA) in Frisco, Texas. At WOGA, he coached members of the United States, Russian and Ecuadorian national teams.
Roberts also spent six years coaching in Norway, serving as the Norwegian National Team head coach for many international competitions.
Before he began his coaching career, Roberts served his country as a communications officer and platoon commander in the U.S. Marine Corps. He was deployed to Iraq in 2005 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Roberts competed for two years at the University of New Mexico before finishing his career as a two-time NCAA qualifier at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, where he earned his bachelor's degree in psychology in 2003. He also earned a master's degree in theology from Fuller Theological Seminary in 2010.
Roberts and his wife, Hanne, have three children; Leo Olav, Aurora Amber and Pax Luca Ryan.
COACHING HISTORY
- 2026-present: Auburn, Head Coach
- 2025-26: Georgia, Co-Head Coach
- 2023-24: Georgia, Assistant Coach
- 2019-23: Alabama, Assistant Coach
- 2014-18: World Olympic Gymnastics Academy (WOGA)
PERSONAL
- Education: BS, Psychology (UMass Amherst, 2003); MA, Theology (Fuller Theological Seminary, 2010); MBA, Business Administration (Alabama, 2021)
- Hometown: Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Wife: Hanne
- Children: Leo Olav, Aurora Amber and Pax Luca Ryan