When the No. 10 Iowa men’s gymnastics team faces No. 3 California Saturday night in Berkeley, Calif., the Hawkeyes will become a part of the final season of Golden Bear men’s gymnastics.

Cal’s program was one of five eliminated by the school in September 2010, and, along with baseball, was left on the chopping block, when three programs recieved reprieves in February. The Golden Bears, competing in their first of two home meets on the season, are led by sophomore Donothan Bailey, who is ranked third in the country on all-around.

Despite saying that the drop of a program is bad for college gymnastics as a whole, Iowa head coach J.D. Reive, who coached at Stanford — Cal’s main rival — before coming to Iowa, said he enjoys the chance for his team to be a part of Cal’s final season.

“It’ll be really fun to go out there and be a part of that,” Reive said.

— by Ryan Murphy