Senior Justin Spring has won just about every award a collegiate gymnast can earn. He is a seven-time All-American, the 2005 NCAA parallel bars and 2004 NCAA high bar champion, the first Illini to win a U.S. National title (high bar), a two-time USA Senior National team member and a team member at the 2005 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Melbourne, Australia last November.

This weekend, he captured two titles that had eluded him in his four-year career. On Friday, he captured the all-around title in the team competition with a score of 54.150, while Saturday he was named Big Ten Gymnast of the Year. Spring became the Illini’s first Big Ten all-around winner since Dominic Minicucci in 1988.

“Justin’s done everything. It was just a matter of time before he put up good routines in the Big Ten,” head coach Yoshi Hayasaki said. “He’s got a chance to win the NCAA all-around title. He’s certainly deserving (of this honor).”

In his last two seasons, Spring finished second in the all-around – in 2005 to Michigan’s Justin Laury and in 2004 to Randy Monahan of Ohio State.

“Two years running, I got second. I was having a great meet and then I had a terrible score on horse,” Spring said. “And I was thinking, ‘It’s going to happen again.'”

Spring, in only his first all-around of the season, recorded the top scores of the day Friday on parallel bars (9.550) and floor exercise (9.600). His 6.950 on pommel horse was definitely reason for concern, but at least a 9.0 on every other event, and a 9.600 on vault, the last event, was enough for him to take first and finish ahead of sophomore teammate Wesley Haagensen who scored a 53.450.

“It just worked out; it was unexpected and really exciting to come out on top my senior year,” Spring said.

Spring’s impressive all-around title was followed Saturday night by his even more impressive feat of being named Big Ten Gymnast of the Year. The Burke, Va., native was the first Illini to win the honor since Travis Romagnoli in 1998. The Nissen-Emery finalist for the nation’s top gymnast also took home a parallel bars title with a 9.550 on Saturday in the event finals.

Although a team National Championship has eluded Spring in his career, he hopes that that will change in two weeks when the Illini travel to Norman, Okla., on April 6-8 for the NCAA Championships. Spring attributes his success to the team that he said “has more character than any other team in the country.”

“It’s a great program,” Spring said of Illinois. “I’ve done some amazing things; it just reflects great on the program. I contribute all my success to being here at (Illinois).”