Watching Pommel Horse on DWTS was not on anyone’s cards this year, but Stephen Nedoroscik did just that on ‘Dedication Night’: “I wanted to make that a point because the sport itself has been slowly dying… to make sure this sport not only is surviving but thriving,” he shared after his performance. “The sport is everything. I have done it since I was four and a half.”

So, when the news concerning Ohio State being on the verge of being the 38th on the list to cut ties with men’s gymnastics became national news, the 25-year-old tweeted, “another step backwards for MGYM. With the success of current and former NCAA gymnasts at the Olympics you’d think NCAA programs would be excited for the upcoming season, not stripping away opportunities.”

Not to divulge, reports only suggested that they are cutting down scholarships but not getting rid of the program yet. But who’s to say it doesn’t paint a grim picture of the program’s future? Interestingly, the Ohio State University Athletics Department brought in about $251 million in revenue last year, which is more than any other in the country. The cost of maintaining scholarships in men’s gymnastics would be negligible compared to the university’s overall athletic revenue! At such crisis times, Nedoroscik’s training gym EVO has some updates for the community which desperately needed a clean break!

On October 23, he took to his Instagram stories to highlight the silver linings of the Olympic victory, primarily to promote exciting new initiatives provided at EVO Gymnastics. In an inspiring reel, he showcased the skills of the athletes currently training at the gym, which has expanded its programs to include younger gymnasts, moving beyond just college-level competition. In rallying support, Nedoroscik writes,

“Sheesh, shoutout to EVO for expanding opportunities outside of college; everyone’s looking great!”

Because let’s face it, students have bills to pay. Just listen to what his mom, Cheryl, had to share in a podcast interview: “Well, he did that because EVO opened the doors to the elite men. And it made sense to try to, you know, he has to live too. And you have got bills. He owes lots of student loans and he has to pay those and EVO offered him the opportunity to still train and make more money.”

Sharp drop of 78.6% of Div-I programs; Ohio State becomes the latest dabbles on uncertain grounds

The news of Ohio State dropping men’s gymnastics scholarships takes us back to August when athletics director Ross Bjork shared that rosters would be cut in compliance with House v. NCAA, which was filed in 2020 by former Arizona State swimmer Grant House. The lawsuit challenged the NCAA rule that could restrict student-athletes from profiting from their NIL.

But coming back to Ohio State, University President Ted Carter also mentioned that some sports would ‘act a little bit more like a club sport’. Interestingly, so far, they have won three national titles, fifteen Big Ten titles, and five Nissen Award winners as the NCAA’s best male gymnast.

What’s surprising is that Ohio State hosted the 2024 NCAA Championship in men’s gymnastics. At their 3,700-seat Covelli Center, Stanford claimed its fifth straight national title and 10th overall. But the latest changes were inevitable, said Gene Smith—the former Buckeyes athletics director who was in Columbus or his induction into the Ohio State athletics Hall of Fame.

“We’ve been blessed to provide the highest level of support to every 36 sports that we have,” Smith said. “You’re not going to be able to do that anymore.” He also stated that dropping scholarships in Olympic sports was a decision being made from Michigan to Penn State and even at Stanford.

It is speculated that the NCAA’s new revenue-sharing model influenced this decision. In fact, there is a chance that other schools might make a similar decision. As per the new model, every school will be permitted to set aside about $21 million in revenue to share with their athletes every year. And as the revenue amount goes higher, so could the cap. Meanwhile, this would also mean that there will be a lot of cost-cutting tactics. How this will affect other universities, only time will tell.