Ray Corn’s legacy will live on for USU Gymnastics
When coach Ray Corn took control over the USU Gymnastics program, the team was nothing but a club-level squad. However, by 2008, when Corn retired, USU gymnastics had become a well-respected Division I program.
Sadly, Corn passed away from a heart attack on Aug. 13 of last year. His legacy at the university, however, will live on forever. In a tribute event conducted on Feb. 12, USU announced the gymnastics practice facility in the HPER building would be named after him. The renaming of the facility came as a shock to few, as his impact on the USU gymnastics program was extremely powerful.
Corn became head coach of the gymnastics team in 1978 when the team was not yet recognized as a Division I NCAA program. But before his 2008 retirement, Corn was the only Division I coach in Aggie history. With his hiring becoming official, the “Ray Corn Era” in Logan was officially underway.
Corn burst onto the scene, recording an impressive 30-4 record in his first season as head coach.
But he was not satisfied. In his second year as head coach, Corn led Utah State to the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women, or AIAW, National Championships, marking the first of four consecutive trips to the event for the Aggies.
Corn spent the next 29 years of his illustrious career racking up accolades.
The Aggies were crowned Big West Conference champions four times under Corn. They also were named Western Gymnastics Conference champions in 2005.
Corn seemed to lead the Aggies to the promised land time and time again. Of his 31 years of coaching, USU qualified for the postseason a staggering 26 times. Of the 26 qualifications, the team made it to the National Championships five times. It is apparent to all that the program would not have been as successful without the leadership of Corn.
The pinnacle of his coaching career, however, came in 1991. The Aggies were able to finish the season strong and qualify for the National Championships, a feat that seemed to be routine under Corn. The Aggies ended the competition strong and finished No.12 in the country, the best finish in program history.
Corn’s success did not go unnoticed by his peers. He was honored as conference coach of the year 6 times and was also recognized as the Midwest Regional Coach of the Year during the team’s impeccable 1991 season.
In a time when the term student-athlete is not taken as seriously as it should, Corn’s motivation towards his athletes to do well in the classroom is genuinely admirable. As Corn pushed his athletes to be great on the mats and bars, he also encouraged his gymnasts to excel academically.
From 1992 until 2008, Corn was the coach of 32 gymnasts who earned academic All-American honors. In addition, 92 Aggie gymnasts received academic all-conference recognition under Corn. To strengthen his student-athlete mantra even more, Corn’s team during the 1990 season earned academic honors after winning the NCAA Academic Championship for the highest team GPA in the country.
Corn was also the head coach of the two best Aggie gymnasts in USU history.
Christy Denson-Pettiette didn’t just perform under Corn, she excelled. Denson-Pettiette was honored as the Big West Gymnast of the Year as a junior in 1999. But she didn’t stop there. As a senior in 2000 she received Big West Gymnast of the Year again. She was also voted Utah State’s Female Athlete of the Year in 1998, 1999 and 2000.
In addition to coaching Denson-Pettiette, Corn coached Kris Stano. Stano was one of the earliest gymnasts that Corn coached, as she performed from 1982-1983. In the biggest moments, Stano thrived. In her first year at USU, Stano and Corn led the Aggies to the AIAW championships. At the pinnacle of collegiate gymnastics at the time, Corn and Stano propelled the Aggies to an impressive ninth-place finish.
Corn was inducted into the USU Hall of Fame in 2015, joining Stano. Two years later, Denson-Pettiete was also inducted.