Bryan Raschilla Position: Assistant Coach Experience: 16th Season

To Bryan Raschilla, now in his 16th season with the Crimson Tide, there is no better place to be than the University of Alabama and no better job than coaching its gymnastics team.

"I absolutely love what I am doing," Raschilla said. "I get to meet and build relationships with some really wonderful people. The chance to work with this caliber of student-athlete, I don't think you get anywhere else. And what I like the most is that it's not just about gymnastics and it's not just about the four years they're here on campus. Being at Alabama is about creating lifelong relationships."

Most importantly to him, Raschilla has seen class after class of Alabama gymnasts come through the program, grow as athletes and people and graduate, ready to make something great of their lives.

"I'm at Alabama to be a part of a program that does things the right way," Raschilla said. "I have the good fortune to coach athletes who excel in academics, athletics and community service. To be able to have some part in their development is really at the heart of why I coach."

Since he joined the Tide for the 1997 season, Raschilla has helped coach Alabama to NCAA Championships in 2011 and 2002 as well as a trio of NCAA runner-up finishes and 13 top-six national finishes overall. With Raschilla on board, the Tide also owns two of the last three Southeastern Conference titles and four overall, with league championships coming in 2011, 2009, 2003 and 2000.

Alabama gymnasts have won 11 individual NCAA titles during his tenure, including Geralen Stack-Eaton's 2011 NCAA Floor Exercise Championship. The Tide has earned 153 All-American honors and 136 Scholastic All-American honors during his tenure. On a conference level, in addition to the team titles, Alabama has won 40 individual SEC titles and been named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll 169 times since Raschilla arrived.

The Crimson Tide's tradition of excellence has garnered a staunch following, another aspect of the program that he loves.

"There is no better program in the country in terms of atmosphere," Raschilla said. "Coleman Coliseum is the best arena to compete in. We average over 13,000 people per home meet and we've sold out multiple times, bringing over 15,000 fans in to watch our ladies compete."

Raschilla's excitement about Alabama goes far beyond the gymnastics program, extending to the University as a whole.

"I love the energy this campus has and how it's growing all the time," Raschilla said. "Our president, Dr. Robert Witt, is doing a tremendous job in raising the bar in all ways, from enrollment to the facilities and everything in between. His dedication to excellence has Alabama reaching new heights in all areas, something that's being recognized on a national basis. There's just a ton of things going on, it's an exciting time."

For Raschilla the campus atmosphere makes Tuscaloosa a great place to raise his family. And while he and wife Laura are both Ohio natives, their son, Adam, born in 1998, and daughter, Kathryn, born in 2001, were both born in Alabama.

"Both our children were born here, we have family that moved here to be with us and to get warm," Raschilla said with a laugh. "Laura and I may be from Ohio originally, but we consider ourselves Alabamians now and we feel fortunate to be raising our family in Tuscaloosa. It's a strong community, one that's growing all the time."

And as his own family has grown, Raschilla has come to appreciate the family aspect of the Tide gymnastics program more and more.

"I am impressed and amazed by how our ladies stay connected to the program and to each other," Raschilla said. "They also remain big fans and supporters of the team, from those that graduated over 30 years ago to those that graduated last year. There is just a tremendous bond, one that lasts a lifetime, and it's truly a family, one that is there in the good times and the tough times."

His duties with the Crimson Tide are as wide ranging as his talents. In addition to in-the-gym coaching, the Mineral Ridge, Ohio native also helps develop the Tide's strength and conditioning program and coordinate Alabama's recruiting efforts.

"Bryan not only brings his keen technical analysis to the team," Sarah Patterson said. "He also brings the sort of stability that is expected of this program. After all, he is now in his 16th year with us, which adds a comforting continuity for the athletes."

He also brings a talent for graphic design to bear on the Tide's posters, logos, advertising, media guide covers along with a host of other projects. So how did the 6-foot, 5-inch redhead with a degree in graphic design get involved in the one sport he'd never tried?

"I probably get asked that question a hundred times a year," Raschilla laughed.

Asked to spot for his high school team, Raschilla's interest continued to develop throughout his time at Youngstown State University in Ohio when he coached age-group gymnastics. After eleven years of club gymnastics and countless state champions, national qualifiers and national team members, he moved into the collegiate arena. "I started in 1983," Raschilla said. "And I've been coaching ever since."

Following a two-year stretch coaching at the University of Michigan, Raschilla came to Alabama and in his years in Tuscaloosa with the Crimson Tide, Raschilla has accumulated masses of great memories, but for him, it's not just the championships, the honors and the victories that stick with him.

"As a coach, I think some of my greatest memories come from those moments that no one else sees," Raschilla said. "It's those moments in the gym when someone is having a hard time, but they push through anyway. It's breakthroughs in practice, and all the hard work along the way that sets up the championship moments. Those are some of my best memories."