The Junkyard

Courtesy of UGA Sports Communications ...

ATHENS-----Jay Hogue, who served as an assistant coach at the University of Denver for the last two years, and Philip Ogletree, who recently completed his 12th season on the staff at LSU, have been named assistant gymnastics coaches at the University of Georgia, head coach Danna Durante announced Thursday.

“We are excited to have Jay and Phil join the staff here at Georgia,” Durante said. “Their technical knowledge of the sport and their relentless pursuit in recruiting will be of great benefit to this program. They have incredible passion and energy for gymnastics, and they are both excited about this opportunity. I think we are going to make a fantastic team. We have a common vision and a common goal, and they will be a tremendous asset to our recruiting efforts and in the training of our athletes to the standard we have at Georgia.”

Hogue was named the 2012 North Central Region Co-Assistant Coach of the Year, and under his direction, Denver gymnastics earned a total of eight WAC event specialist of the week honors on vault and bars this past season. Hogue’s vault squad tied the school record with a 49.425 against Air Force.

A professional member of USA Gymnastics for 25 years, Hogue has spent the bulk of his career at Orlando Metro Gymnastics, where he helped develop optional gymnasts and coached at the U.S. Classics and Junior Olympic National Championships. Prior to his time at Denver, Hogue coached for three years at Broadway Gymnastics in Oviedo, Fla.

Hogue graduated from the University of Central Florida in 1997 with a bachelor's degree in mathematics, physics and engineering, and earned his associate of arts degree from Valencia Community College in 1993. A native of Orlando, Fla., native, Hogue and his wife Lisa have two sons, Pierce, 8 and Colin, 5.

“I’m thrilled to be a part of the gymnastics program at the University of Georgia,” Hogue said. “It’s a program with great history and tradition. I’m excited to be a part of the UGA family, and look forward to keeping the great gymnastics tradition alive and progress it to the next step.”

Ogletree, a member of the UGA men’s gymnastics team from 1980-82, spent the last 12 years as an assistant coach at LSU, primarily coaching uneven bars, while also serving as the Tigers’ recruiting coordinator. He was named the NCAA Central Regional Assistant Coach of the Year in 2004 and 2005 and helped lead the Tigers to the NCAA Super Six in 2008 and 2009.

During his tenure at LSU, Ogletree guided the Tigers to 12 of the top-13 bars scores in school history, including a school record 49.650 in 2002. His bars squads ranked in the top-10 nationally each year from 2004-10, including a No. 3 ranking in 2005 and a No. 4 ranking in 2009.

“I feel great about coming back home to Georgia,” Ogletree said. “Every time I came back it always felt like it was still in my heart. It’s a place I wanted to come back to for a long time. As I walk around and see the history and tradition, I’m just honored to be here. We are going to do everything we can to continue the success of the gymnastics program here and to keep getting better.”

A native of Atlanta, Ogletree also previously coached at the Georgia Gymnastics Academy in Lawrenceville and the Atlanta School of Gymnastics in Tucker. He graduated from Georgia State in 1992 with a degree in early childhood education. Ogletree and his wife Jill have two children, Bridgett, 18, and Jake, 16.