TOM FARDEN

Coaching Synopsis
Year at Utah: 5th
2011-present: Utah Assistant Coach
2010: Arkansas Assistant Coach
2004-2009: Southeast Missouri State, Head Coach
1999-2003: Southeast Missouri State, Ass't. Coach
1996-1999: TAGS Gymnastics, Coach
1992-1996: Spectrum Training Center, Owner/Coach

 

Education
Southeast Missouri State, 2004
Bachelor's Degree
(Outdoor Recreation)

 

Highlights
NCAA Region Coach of the Year: 2008
Conference Coach of the Year: 2006, '07, '08, '09

 

 

 

Greg Marsden describes fifth-year Ute assistant Tom Farden as "the future" of Utah gymnastics, along with co-head coach Megan Marsden. The legendary Utah coach takes it a step further by acknowledging he and Megan already view Farden as a head coach.

 

"We have three experienced head coaches on our staff," says Marsden, referring not only to Farden's six years as the head coach at Southeast Missouri State but also to his role on Utah's staff. "I still love coaching and look forward to coming to the gym every day, but the bottom line is that Megan and Tom are the future of this program and that is a great thing. Utah gymnastics has been central to Megan's and my life for decades and I can't adequately express the joy we take in seeing Tom share our love for this program. He brings boundless energy and enthusiasm to recruiting and coaching and the three of us work seamlessly together. We have the same goals and vision for keeping Utah in the top tier of college gymnastics."

 

Farden, a dynamic recruiter and a skilled coach, oversees Utah's bar team and assists with the floor exercise routines.

In his first four seasons at Utah, the bar and floor lineups have produced 18 All-America awards (regular season and NCAA), an NCAA silver medalist, six routines in the NCAA individual event finals, five regional champions and four Pac-12 individual titles.

 

All-Americans coached by Farden include the 2013 NCAA uneven bar runner-up Georgia Dabritz, Nansy Damianova, Becky Tutka, Lia Del Priore, Hailee Hansen and Corrie Lothrop. Qualifying into the NCAA individual event finals on bars and floor since Farden's arrival at Utah have been Dabritz (bars in 2013), Damianova (bars and floor in 2013, floor in 2014) and Tutka (floor in 2014).

Utah's first Pac-12 Conference champion in any sport came on Farden's event when Dabritz placed first on bars at the 2012 Pac-12 Championships. It was the first of four Pac-12 titles by Dabritz, who also won bars, floor (tying with Damianova) and vault at the 2014 conference meet and was named the Pac-12 Specialist of the Year.

 

Farden's NCAA regional champs to date are Kyndal Robarts on floor in 2012, Dabritz on bars in 2012 and 2013, and Damianova on floor in 2013 and 2014.

 

Farden draws from 17 years of NCAA coaching experience and another nine years as a club coach. He spent six years as the head coach at Southeast Missouri State following a five-year stint as a SEMO assistant, and was named the 2008 NCAA South Central Regional Coach of the Year.

Farden compiled a 70-46 record as Southeast Missouri State's head coach from 2004-09, guided the Redhawks to NCAA Regional appearances in 2006 and 2008, and coached 14 individual regional qualifiers. He was voted the NCAA South Central Regional Coach of the Year in 2008 when SEMO climbed as high as No. 22 in the national polls and qualified for regionals (placing fifth). The Redhawks recorded their most wins in over a decade in 2008, finishing 17-9 overall. In 2009, Farden directed SEMO to a 14-3 record and a Midwest Independent Conference championship. He was a four-time MIC Coach of the Year (2006-09).

 

Farden's SEMO teams won national academic championships in his last three seasons and his gymnasts earned 70 total scholastic All-America citations. He also fundraised $250,000 for two major gymnastics renovation projects (the locker room and practice facility).

After 11 seasons at SEMO, Farden went to Arkansas as an assistant coach in 2010. In his only season before leaving for Utah, the Razorbacks placed 11th at the 2010 NCAA Championships.

He began his gymnastics coaching career at the club level in his home state of Minnesota. From 1992-96, he was the owner/coach of Spectrum Training Center in Anoka, Minn., and from 1996-99, he worked as the team coach for TAGS Gymnastics in Minneapolis.

 

Farden has contributed to his sport on an administrative level as well, serving on the Ethics Committee of the National Association of Collegiate Gymnastics Coaches/Women (NACGC/W) since 2006. In addition, he was on the Minnesota USA Gymnastics State Board from 1995-99.

A native of Dayton, Minn., Farden earned his bachelor's degree in outdoor recreation from SEMO in 2004. Farden and his wife, the former Christina Faulkner, have a son Ki (pronounced key).