A 2015 Rutgers graduate, Michael Rosso is in his sixth season as an assistant coach in 2023-24. He primarily coaches vault and floor exercise. Rosso returned after working on the Temple staff for three seasons (2016-18). Helping to elevate the team RQS from 190.930 to 195.015 over that span, he coached two conference event champions in Briana Odom (2016, floor) and Daisy Todd (2018, vault).
Rosso spurred the Scarlet Knights to a record-breaking year in 2023, concluding the regular season in spectacular fashion by winning a tri-meet against UPenn and No. 35 West Virginia with a new program-record score of 196.875. The new school standard was powered by a school-record-tying 49.275 on vault. Under Rosso's direction on vault, Emily Leese tied the school record of 9.925 in the regular season finale and went on to compete in the NCAA Regional Championships with an NQS of 9.870. The Scarlet Knights also set the school standard on floor with a 49.425, and recorded the No. 2 mark in school history with a 49.400 during the 2023 season.
Rosso coached Rutgers into the national rankings for the first time since 2014 as the Scarlet Knights were ranked No. 24 during the 2022 season. Rutgers capped a successful 2022 campaign with three gymnasts – Belle Huang, Hannah Joyner and Emily Leese – qualifying for the NCAA Regionals, marking the most in a single season since 2018. The Scarlet Knights recorded their highest team score at the 2022 Big Ten Championships with a total of 195.750. It also ranked as the ninth-highest team score in the program record books. Rutgers recorded its highest overall score in program history, a mark previously set in 2014 with a 196.400 in the regular-season finale.
In 2021, Rosso helped Rutgers continue to rewrite the record book. The Scarlet Knights posted their highest finish and score at the Big Ten Championships (195.675-fifth), the highest road score (195.975), the second highest beam score (49.275), the third best team score (195.975) ever, the fourth best home and ninth best overall score (195.525) in program history. The Scarlet Knights also recorded the program's first conference victory over Nebraska during the regular season. Hannah Joyner and Belle Huang advanced to NCAA Regionals in all-around, while Joyner moved on to Nationals as the third gymnast in Rutgers history to reach the highest stage.
The 2020 season saw Rosso coaching the Scarlet Knights to a new school record on vault, recording a team score of 49.225 in the event at the Big Five meet. Kaitlyn Hall was named Second Team All-Big Ten with a resume that included pushing her career-high on vault to 9.875 three times on the year, aiding in the new program-record at Big Five’s as well. In the historic victory at New Hampshire, the Scarlet Knights posted a top 5 program floor score of 49.250 to help boast the best road score in program history with a 195.900. The mark led RU to victory over No. 15 for its highest ranked victory and first defeat of an SEC foe.
In 2019, Rosso was part of leading the Scarlet Knights to a196 and two wins over ranked Big Ten opponents. Belle Huang, a Second Team All-Big Ten selection, qualified for NCAA Regionals on floor exercise and posted a 9.900, which tied for the highest individual mark at the meet in program history. RU had seven routines of 9.900 or better on floor throughout the season, with Jenna Rizkalla recording the seventh mark of at least 9.900 in Rutgers history on vault. As a unit, floor exercise scored as high as 49.300, fourth-best in the school record books, and ended with a 49.200 at Big Ten Championships to place 35th nationally with a 49.090 NQS.
In 2018, the Owls sent two vault specialists to NCAA Regionals for the first time in program history after having a representative in 2017 for the first time since 2009. Rosso mentored five first team all-conference performers and three second team athletes between vault and floor this past season. The team established new event score records under Rosso’s watch, posting a 49.300 on floor and a 49.125 on vault. That was part of raising the RQS from over four years, bringing the vault mark from 47.995 to 48.890 and the floor number from 48.200 to 49.015.
While studying communications at Rutgers, Rosso was a student assistant coach for the women's gymnastics team for two years. His responsibilities included equipment management and set up, gymnastics drill set up and hands-on spotting on all four events. During his time, Rutgers gymnastics saw its first NCAA regional appearance since 2007 and recorded six of the top 10 highest team scores in program history, including the current record score of 196.225.
Rosso was a gymnast at Surgents Elite School of Gymnastics in Roselle Park, New Jersey, where he was a five-time junior Olympic national qualifier. He is originally from Marlboro, New Jersey. His brother, Ralph, is an assistant coach for the University of Washington women's gymnastics team.
