Before the world championships, before the SEC honors and before she cemented herself atop the uneven bars to post the nation’s best score, senior Riley McCusker was just a kid who didn’t want to leave the gym.
“Honestly, I had no idea what I was getting myself into,” McCusker said. “All I knew was that I loved the sport from the bottom of my heart.”
That love, she said, is what carried her through everything that followed.
Now a senior leader for Gators women's gymnastics, McCusker has evolved into one of the most reliable and respected gymnasts in the country. She is a former elite standout turned NCAA anchor whose comeback story has come to define both her season and her team’s culture.
But her path to greatness was never straightforward. It was defined through setbacks, surgeries and moments that forced her to rebuild who she was beyond the sport.
McCusker’s foundation was created before she arrived in Gainesville.
As a young elite gymnast, she spent endless hours in the gym, mastering longer and harsher routines. That background, she said, created a base that later translated seamlessly to college gymnastics, where precision is essential.
“In elite, routines are a lot longer and harder in different ways,” she said. “College is more about picking and choosing the skills you can execute perfectly. All the work I’ve put in my entire life has allowed me to be successful here.”
That polishing has shown this season. McCusker recently posted the nation’s top bars score and earned SEC Specialist of the Week, the type of accolade that feels different now than it would have years ago.
“I’m just so proud of myself,” she said. “Especially coming back from my junior year when I had an injury and had to redshirt. Getting back to that level and leaning on my teammates for support. It means everything.”
The comeback wasn’t just physical. It was mental.
Her return followed a second ankle reconstruction, a recovery that demanded patience and belief in a body that once felt unbreakable.
“My senior year back, it was a little scary,” McCusker said. “I didn’t fully have the trust in my ankle yet. I had to build that slowly. But going into this year, I was really confident in my body and excited for a good season.”
That confidence now shows in the calm way she mounts the bars and the smoothness in her landings.
This season feels both like a culmination of what McCusker has learned and a new beginning.
“It’s definitely everything I’ve learned and been through,” she said. “But it’s also a stepping stone. There’s always room for more growth.”
In 2021, her identity was tested.
After missing the Olympic team while also battling injury, McCusker hit the lowest point of her career.
“It was devastating,” she said. “I lost who I was as a person. My entire identity was tied up in gymnastics.”
She was able to rebuild herself by seeing beyond the medals. At Florida, she found something stronger than success, a community.
“The love here at the University of Florida was super helpful,” she said. “I learned so much from it, and hopefully I can share that story and help other girls going through similar things.”
The experience changed the way she leads, and her impact now stretches beyond the mat.
McCusker has begun speaking to younger athletes about health and recovery, including an appearance at the School of American Ballet discussing relative energy deficiency in sport. She’s also working on research with the Hospital for Special Surgery focused on female athlete wellness.
For someone who once tied her entire identity to gymnastics, she has now shifted her focus to helping others avoid the mistakes she made.
“Just being educated in health and wellness,” she said. “Helping the next generation be successful in their careers.”
McCusker and the No. 2 Gators face off with No. 7 Missouri at the Hearnes Center in Columbia, Missouri on Friday, with the meet set for 9 p.m. ET.
Contact Seth Haber at shaber@alligator.org. Follow him on X @shaber05.
Seth is a junior sports journalism student in his first semester with the Alligator covering gymnastics. He has prior experience covering beats for highschool football during his time at WRUF. During his free time you can see him walking around Gainesville or binge-watching the latest and greatest shows on TV.
