In light of LSU gymnastics’ takedown of No. 1 Oklahoma last week, coaching legend Sara “D-D” Breaux is here to share her thoughts on the season.
The gymnastics Hall of Famer served as LSU’s head coach from 1978-2020 and led the team to 35 NCAA championship appearances including four second-place finishes in her career. With only four meets remaining in the regular season and an invigorating win against top dog Oklahoma on Friday, she believes the Tigers are only just getting started.
“I think we’ve not seen the best of this team yet,” Breaux said.
In her retirement, Breaux still acts as an ambassador for LSU athletics and works to make the program she raised from its infancy to be bigger and better every year.
After almost 50 years of investment, she knows this team better than almost anyone.
The Tigers are 7-2 overall – most notably claiming a win over Oklahoma after falling to the Sooners in week two’s collegiate quad. LSU’s second loss came from a shaky performance at Arkansas but they remain undefeated at home.
Ranked No. 2 in the preseason polls, the team has fallen to No. 3 after seven weeks of lineup changes, injuries, season-highs and season-lows. The 2025 season is proving to be unpredictable, but Breaux has confidence that the Tigers are unrivaled in skill.
“I think that’s what separates us from a lot of teams,” Breaux said. “Our routines are a notch above everybody else’s because of the amount of difficulty that our athletes are doing.”
According to her, that showed on Friday night.
LSU’s last-rotation comeback resulted from a stellar sequence of routines on floor. Kaliya Lincoln was a first-time leadoff followed by Sierra Ballard, Kailin Chio, Amari Drayton, Aleah Finnegan and Haleigh Bryant to seal the deal.
“The six people that I saw doing floor for LSU on Friday night was the best floor group I’ve ever seen represent LSU,” Breaux said.
Though, the gymnasts weren’t the only thing that impressed her that night.
The fourth largest crowd in school history took over the PMAC as 13,386 fans, students and alumni took their seats for what was deemed online as the gymnastics ‘Super Bowl.’
Breaux said it’s exactly what she pictured after decades of fighting to bring attention to college gymnastics.
“I came to work every single day with that vision and that belief that it would happen – that gymnastics would one day have the same popularity and fanbase as our men’s sports,” Breaux said.
While the crowd’s energy was on point, she believes LSU’s performance in Oklahoma was far from the best they can even do. Moving forward, continuing to display improvement every week will be critical.
“What makes Oklahoma so good is their intensity and attention to detail,” Breaux said. “I call it polishing the rock, and I think as LSU begins to move forward, there’ll be a little more polishing of the rock.”
Breaux mentioned the Tigers now have an official coach for each event, which should help in the perfecting of smaller details.
As the SEC championships creep closer and closer, questions have circulated about LSU’s chances against the likes of Florida and Oklahoma. Both were beaten on the Tigers’ turf, but the title could be up for grabs in Birmingham.
Oklahoma enters its first season in a new conference after earning 14 championships in the Big 12.
“Every year they’ve had a cakewalk,” Breaux said. “They easily won their conference. They tend to get an easy bid, and then off they sail into the national championships. Going into the SEC, I think it’s going to be a little bit different.”
LSU, Oklahoma and Florida make up three of the top five teams in the country and are all competing for the same conference title.
While a new opponent has been added to the mix, Breaux is sure LSU is on the right track.
“LSU is going to be a better team,” Breaux said. “Oklahoma is Oklahoma. They’re not going to be any better than what we saw Friday night. They might clean up some landings, but they’re not going to do any more difficulty.”
When the Sooners failed to claim a seat at the 2024 NCAA national championships, Breaux would argue it didn’t make the job any easier for the LSU team.
Everything came down to one final routine on the last event. Aleah Finnegan made her case on the balance beam, and after 47 years, Breaux witnessed her program win its first national title.
“There was a tremendous amount of gratification, not just for that night, but for every hurdle and everything that I have done throughout my career,” Breaux said. “I don’t know if I could have felt any better.”
The road to nationals looks slightly different this year, but for LSU, the goal is the same: protect the crown.
The Tigers have kept their home record clean but won’t have the same advantage in the postseason.
“Will there be 13,000 fans screaming for us?” Breaux said. “No, it’ll be a little more neutral, so we have to bring our focus, energy and true swagger.”
LSU will have to utilize that mindset on the road this week as they face Kentucky in Lexington.
The Tigers only have two meets left in Baton Rouge with the annual Podium Challenge at the Raising Cane’s River Center on Feb. 28 and will face Georgia in the PMAC the following week.
The team’s last chance to improve their standing will be at Auburn, closing out the regular season.
So, with all that’s happened and everything that’s still to come, the big question looms: Will LSU win it all again?
For Breaux, it’s a no-brainer.
“When your athletes do the amount of difficulty that our athletes are capable of doing, you’re on the pace of national champions,” Breaux said.
