Remembering Missouri Tigers gymnastics program founder, former coach Jake Jacobson
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- Jake Jacobson founded the Missouri Tigers gymnastics program in 1979 and retired in 1999.
- Jacobson compiled a 229-198-1 regular-season record and 13 NCAA Regional appearances.
- Jacobson created the Cat Classic, which drew a program record crowd of 10,562 in 1987.
The man long known as the father of Mizzou gymnastics is being mourned after his passing last week at age 89.
Charles “Jake” Jacobson began the Missouri Tigers’ gymnastics program in 1979 before retiring 20 years later. Jacobson, who died May 5, was Big 12 coach of the year in 1999, his final season with the program.
“I am so saddened by coach Jacobson’s passing,” Mizzou gymnastics head coach Shannon Welker said via Mizzou Athletics. “He was a pioneer in collegiate gymnastics and at the University of Missouri.
“Jake paved the way for Mizzou Gymnastics and the opportunities so many women and coaches have been afforded. He was an innovator in creating events that attracted some of the largest crowds in the country to gymnastics competitions in his tenure. We will miss his presence at Mizzou Gymnastics events as will the many alumni he inspired.”
Jacobson was introduced to gymnastics in 1962, when he was a physical education instructor at Grand View College in Des Moines, Iowa. A U.S. Marines veteran, he went on to begin a competitive gymnastics program at Grand View in 1964 before being contacted by Mizzou to build a program in Columbia.
Jacobson had many successful seasons during his time as a Tiger. His teams were 229-198-1 in the regular season, and he led them to 13 NCAA Regional appearances. The 1981 Missouri team won the NCAA Central Region and advanced to the NCAA Championships.
Jacobson, who also led Mizzou to the 1992 Big Eight Conference championship, founded the Cat Classic. The event set a program record crowd of 10,562 in 1987 — featuring an appearance by U.S. Olympic gold medalist Mary Lou Retton.
“In the early years, I didn’t have much of a budget or practice area,” Jacobson said after being inducted to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2024. “I brought all of the equipment from Grand View (in Iowa) to start with. I was able to market the sport to Ralston Purina.
“I would consider myself a combination of a hard-nose and soft coach. But my gymnasts were like my daughters. They knew that they could seek advice as needed. They considered me their second father. They would often come to our house for get-togethers.”
Jacobson will long be remembered for starting a Mizzou program that has become one of the school’s most successful in modern times.
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