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Gymnast Sam Phillips on modeling, fashion influences & landing the perfect floor routine

By · Updated on March 8, 2024

Sam Phillips was always drawn to athletics. Growing up, the University of Nebraska star was constantly playing sports with his two older brothers.

But his true calling came when he hit the mats. Starting at five years old, Phillips excelled at gymnastics. Now a fifth-year captain for the Cornhuskers, one of the most prestigious programs in college sports, Phillips is enjoying his peak.

For him, gymnastics is a vital part of his daily ritual.

“If I’m feeling down and having a bad day, that’s where I go to get it out of my system,” he said. “If I’m feeling creative, that’s where I go to get it out of my system.”

Phillips worked hard to arrive at this mental place. The Southern California native missed all of last season due to injury, which pushed him in new ways. Unable to contribute on the score sheet, he made his impact felt in more intangible ways.

One of those avenues is his status as the only known out male athlete at Nebraska.

Phillips, who identifies as gay, formed a chapter of Athlete Ally at Nebraska. He takes his role as an LGBTQ+ athlete seriously.

“It’s so, so important to be a positive influence in this world that currently has lots of intolerance and ignorance producing hateful actions,” he said in a Pride Month interview. “I am the only out male athlete at Nebraska, and it’s lonely and isolating at times. But I think back to what if younger me saw me? How secure and hopeful he would be in himself if he saw an out male athlete being so involved and having a prominent role in all athletics and athletic-related departments.”

During Phillips’ last healthy campaign, he was named First-Team All-Big Ten and won two regular season All-American honors in floor and high bar.

Back on the mats this season, he’s picking up right where he left off.

To kick off the year, Phillips won the high bar at a men’s gymnastics All-Star meet.

Away from the gym, Phillips is taking full advantage of the NCAA’s NIL policy, which allows athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness—just like the pros.

The fashionista is signed to marketing deals with companies such as Adidas and PSD Underwear.

Our man looks great, whether he’s rocking briefs or sneaks.

With the season in full swing, Queerty recently caught up with Phillips to chat about lessons learned, his favorite part of gymnastics and affinity for a sexy photo shoot. Here’s what he had to say…

QUEERTY: What did you learn about yourself last season while you were injured?

SAM PHILLIPS: I learned I actually like the coaching and supporting side of gymnastics. If I’m being brutally honest, just being inconsistent with competing all around and competing in general due to injuries, I’ve lost a bit of my competitive edge. But I think I’ve gained leadership. I think I’ve gained all around knowledge of how to be a support system for the team, and be a leader. It’s forced me to take a step back and focus on tiny details and bigger picture things. When you suffer losses, you have to learn from them. I’m in the process of being a student in life, and learning how to be gracious in defeat, and take it as a learning lesson to improve my craft for the future.

What’s something about being a D1 athlete that people don’t know?

People always think we’re handed things. They’re like, “Oh, they’re a D1 athlete, they don’t have the troubles of being a college student.” That is completely wrong! We are so blessed, we have a lot of benefits, 100%. I will say that. But it’s hard work, man.

There are days when I leave this house at 6:45 a.m., and I don’t get back until 8:00 p.m. We have weights in the morning. If you’re a regular college student and you want to eat a meal, go ahead and eat a meal. But when you’re an athlete, every single thing you do is for your sport. So we lift weights, we go to breakfast for fuel. Then we go to rehab. That’s mandatory. Then classes, schools, extra-cirriculars. A lot of us are involved in the student athlete council, and other separate groups–diversity and inclusion groups. We have meetings. Then we have practice, and we get there an hour early. We’re there for like five hours. Then we go to dinner, because we need fuel. During the season, you can’t even enjoy a meal, because food is fuel. Everything you do is for your sport. A lot of work is put into it—it becomes your job.

What’s your favorite routine?

Floor! Floor is the one event where nine times out of 10, I will salute my hand, and be like, “Yeah, I’m gonna hit this. No doubt.” You have a lot of adrenaline when you compete, but when you’re doing floor, it’s good to just let it all out. You need that power and endurance. Floor is the one event I love competing in. It’s like a performance; everybody is watching because it’s typically the biggest event. So yeah, I love floor, and high-bar. There’s a lot of risk to it, but I usually have a huge routine. I feel like the risk-reward factor is pretty great because you have such a huge routine. When you know you’ve hit it, it’s like “Yes! I stayed on the bar and hit it!”

You’ve done a lot of modeling! What do you enjoy about it?

I got into it before NIL. I’ve always loved fashion—my dad was an actor, so whenever he would go to events, he had a million suits, million ties, million bowties. So I think I got it from him. I’ve always loved putting on a good fit and taking a good picture. With NIL, it was an opportunity to do that for brands. I use each opportunity to explore that side of me and test it out. Then Cliff Watts reached out to me, he’s a celebrity photographer in LA. We got to do some things, we met up twice to do some photoshoots. With his help, I got tips, and got to explore the more artistic side of modeling with body formation and things like that. That helped me build my craft.

But I love it! It’s another form of artistic expression. I think it’s beautiful, and a great way to show off yourself and your essence and your body. While doing so, you become comfortable in your skin, and express yourself how you want to. Literally, every picture is different. You can explore and illustrate 1,000 different expressions.

Who are some of your fashion influences?

Billy Porter. The way he blurs the lines between gender, he does a really good job with it. I remember my first time seeing him on Instagram on an awards show, I was like, “Ohh, that’s pretty good.” 

Then honestly, I just see a lot, and take in a lot. Zandaya, I like her fashion a lot. I feel like she has a chic elegance that’s edgy yet graceful. Colman Domingo has pretty good fashion sense. He just showed up on the cover of Vanity Fair with a nice little cape!

What’s it like being a young gay man in Lincoln, Nebraska?

It’s very small! There’s a joke in the gay community that every one knows every one, and that is like 10 times the case here. It’s so concentrated, and every one knows every one. 

But I will say, they did show up for the Pride parade! We were on the Huskers float for the Pride parade in Lincoln. It was a huge showing, a large crowd. The floats were beautiful. So they showed up for the Pride parade! 

What do you do for fun?

I love hanging with my teammates and just adventuring. My house is the place where freshmen will come if they’re feeling homesick or just need a place to crash outside of their dorms. I love hosting them, being a dad to them. But I love going thrifting, going to brunch, photography, taking videos. I’m constantly doing an NIL thing. Doing shoots for that is always fun. Then just going out. I’m an extrovert and love social life!

What’s next for you in 2024?

Continuing the season, trying to show up and show out. Take the Huskers far, we’re still looking to win a championship. Hopefully at NCAAs, I can qualify for championships, and just compete. That’s a goal of mine, to get back on the championship stage. 

After championships, just take time this summer to explore and revitalize myself. I haven’t had a summer to rest and vacation. Then come the fall, I have a sixth year of eligibility. I’ll just say that!

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