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Amy Smith fired by Clemson after two seasons as gymnastics coach
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- Amy Smith fired by Clemson after two seasons as gymnastics coach
CLEMSON — Clemson athletic director Graham Neff fired gymnastics coach Amy Smith on April 18 after two seasons.
In a brief media release, Neff announced Clemson "parted ways" with Smith and added the athletic department will "immediately commence a national search" for its next head coach.
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Smith was hired in April 2022 and just concluded her second season as the program's inaugural coach. She led Clemson to two NCAA tournament appearances, including its first NCAA regional win in program history in 2025.
Clemson and Neff supported Smith's hiring despite criticism from her former players, and a November 2023 Washington Post story that detailed allegations of verbal abuse and having a toxic culture from former gymnasts at North Carolina, where she was an assistant, and Utah State, where she was a coach.
"Certainly, I have been in dialogue with Coach (Smith) prior to her hire, and certainly since then, and couldn't be more excited for her support of her program and student-athletes and our support administratively for those resources and expectations," Neff said at a November 2023 news conference.
Clemson gymnastics also received a Level III NCAA violation in 2024 after Smith did not sign off on the team's "squad list" prior to the team's first competition, as required by the NCAA. It faced William & Mary in its first match of its inaugural season last year on Jan. 12 at Littlejohn Coliseum.
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According to the NCAA, an institution must complete a squad list for each sport by the first day of outside competition, and players must be featured on the list to be eligible. As a result, she received rules education as a corrective action.
Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at dcarter@gannett.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Amy Smith fired as Clemson gymnastics coach after two seasons
