College What's Everyones Thoughts On....

[dont.get.FANCY.]

Ncsta and "meet" style competitions? Im on Maryland Competitive Cheer and personally I'm IN LOVE with it!!! Truly believe it is the future of college cheerleading. Anyone else?

 

[tntdynomite]

I didn't watch the NCSTA meet that was posted, but I did watch the entire video of the Stunt meet that they did at Cheersport. I thought it was boring to watch, but maybe I would get a different feeling if I was actually there. There are 0 Stunt or NCSTA teams in my area so I won't have the opportunity to watch in person.

Please shed some light on how it is to actually compete in a NCSTA meet, prep involved, what you feel is so great about it, etc. I would love to know what you think since you are actually on a team.

 

[dont.get.FANCY.]

The main point of creating the meet style is to make competitive cheerleading a varsity sport in college.

The style at cheersport is a little different then how we do it. We don't go "head on head" at the same time.

It is set up like a gymnastics meet kinda. We have a set compulsory stunt and set compulsory tumbling that means maryland and the 5 other schools we go against that are in this organization (Oregon, Baylor, Fairmont, Azusa, Quinnipiac) and we take turns going on the mat doing the exact same partner stunt, pyramid, and tumbling. We also have tumbling and partner stunting and pyramid rounds that is up to us, basically the best tumblers and stunters go out. One part of the meet includes team routine. Which is 2 minute 30 second reg routine with music, a dance, and everything fun about all star. In between all the rounds they announce scores, so its easy to keep up (kinda like a 2 day competition when they announce day 1 scores)

It does get boring, not gonna lie. I miss my hair bow and lipstick and glitter, not gonna lie.

The way I'm thinking about it is that it's like Worlds. The first couple of years people were skeptical and then after a couple years (hopefully) its gonna skyrocket. I just wanna be a real college athlete just like a basketball player, or a swimmer, and I think that this is gonna make it happen.

Here is a full meet against Oregon and Azusa.

Hope I explained it all clearly. Writing isn't my strongest point :/

http://www.goducks.com/mediaPortal/...MENU_ID&SPSID=105361&SPID=11402&DB_OEM_ID=500

 

[Sitz_Lamos]

NCATA meet look fun for teams, and Im not sure if you have seen a STUNT meet yet, but they are similar, yet very different. Same idea, same concept, completely different rules, standards, etc. I think both NCATA and STUNT are heading in the right direction to help bring justice to cheerleading!!

 

[Brenner]

When " don't get fancy" explained it to me..one of the things that impressed me was....

She was talking about the first half of the meet. Maryland didn't do that well. They had to go into the locker room at halftime a figure out how they we going to get some of the points back they had let go..in the previous rounds.
Like, it's not all over in 2 min and 30 seconds. There are different rounds and anything can happen to any team in any round. The whole meet may take 2 or 2 and a half hours.

Coaches need to be smart and quick on their feet. They need to be able to rally the team during half time and come back with a win.

 

[Sitz_Lamos]

STUNT is done in quarters and rounds within each quarter as well. Similar situation happened between UofL and Morehead!

 

[Mightymouse34]

The meet style in my opinion takes away its appeal as a spectator. Granted its awesome that the girls in this sport are on the way to being recognized as athletes (males are still on their own at this point). But the way its set up its gonna turn into gymnastics, which is a very slow paced sport and not a very big spectator sport at the college level. Minus the very few routines that are actually different from the others its not intense. The intensity that comes from only having 2 minutes and 30 seconds in the routine to show the crowd everything you got really is what made cheer special in my opinion. It was an adrenaline rush for the spectators and made innovation part of the sport. I really do not understand why we have to change the sport to become considered athletes? Did we not posses athletic ability before Ncata or Stunt? Why cant NCAA just adopt everything that has been set in place before with the all girl programs?

 

[AScheer]

Agree. I'm not a fan of Stunt or NCATA. Nothing against the athletes involved, it's personal preference I guess but I find it boring and slow. The intensity and excitement that makes competitive cheerleading is gone. I still don't understand why so many people in the industry want to change the sport so much. Why are they involved with cheer if they are that unhappy with how its done now. I know everyone wants to get the sport recognition, but just being labeled a sport won't necessarily bring the respect that I think is ultimately what everyone wants. There are lots of amazing athletes in the world who don't necessarily get the sport status - skateboarding for example - but it doesn't mean they aren't incredibly talented athletes.

 

[coachrah]

Agree. I'm not a fan of Stunt or NCATA. Nothing against the athletes involved, it's personal preference I guess but I find it boring and slow. The intensity and excitement that makes competitive cheerleading is gone. I still don't understand why so many people in the industry want to change the sport so much. Why are they involved with cheer if they are that unhappy with how its done now. I know everyone wants to get the sport recognition, but just being labeled a sport won't necessarily bring the respect that I think is ultimately what everyone wants. There are lots of amazing athletes in the world who don't necessarily get the sport status - skateboarding for example - but it doesn't mean they aren't incredibly talented athletes.

I don't think anyone was unhappy with how cheerleading exists today. Cheerleading exists on all of the NCATA campuses. The Universities supporting the NCATA athletes are not an industry...they are educational institutions. Part of sports recognition for student-athletes is receiving benefits as well as adhering to sport specific compliance rules that are set up to oversee their overall well being as student-athletes. I have yet to meet a parent or an athlete who has a complaint about the benefits they are being afforded. Doesn't a dedicated budget, scholarships, and adhering to standards that allow them to succeed both athletically as well as academically equate to respect.

 

[AScheer]

I don't think anyone was unhappy with how cheerleading exists today. Cheerleading exists on all of the NCATA campuses. The Universities supporting the NCATA athletes are not an industry...they are educational institutions. Part of sports recognition for student-athletes is receiving benefits as well as adhering to sport specific compliance rules that are set up to oversee their overall well being as student-athletes. I have yet to meet a parent or an athlete who has a complaint about the benefits they are being afforded. Doesn't a dedicated budget, scholarships, and adhering to standards that allow them to succeed both athletically as well as academically equate to respect.

By unhappy with how it exists today I was referring to the people/companies that are creating STUNT or NCATA, not necessarily the athletes involved and especially not the Universities supporting it. I think its great that cheer may eventually become a sport and therefore get all the benefits of being one, I just hate that it really isn't cheer getting recognized, its something else that only resembles cheer. From what I was told (and I could be wrong) but if it does become a sport then the colleges will have to choose one or the other and cannot participate in both types of cheerleading. It will be traditional vs Stunt/NCATA, and if Universities are benefitting from Stunt/NCATA with title 9 then why wouldn't they choose it. This could potentially make cheer as we know it non existent - at least at the college level.

Having sport status doesn't automatically equal respect though! Take bowling. How many schools have a bowling team. They get all those things but aren't necessarily given respect, so just because the university gives a budget, scholarships and rules, doesn't mean that the public respects you as a sport! I think respect will just come over time by educating people and showing them just what cheerleading is. So many people still don't know much about cheer therefore they don't respect it and still only see stereotypes.

 

[coachrah]

By unhappy with how it exists today I was referring to the people/companies that are creating STUNT or NCATA, not necessarily the athletes involved and especially not the Universities supporting it. I think its great that cheer may eventually become a sport and therefore get all the benefits of being one, I just hate that it really isn't cheer getting recognized, its something else that only resembles cheer. From what I was told (and I could be wrong) but if it does become a sport then the colleges will have to choose one or the other and cannot participate in both types of cheerleading. It will be traditional vs Stunt/NCATA, and if Universities are benefitting from Stunt/NCATA with title 9 then why wouldn't they choose it. This could potentially make cheer as we know it non existent - at least at the college level.

Having sport status doesn't automatically equal respect though! Take bowling. How many schools have a bowling team. They get all those things but aren't necessarily given respect, so just because the university gives a budget, scholarships and rules, doesn't mean that the public respects you as a sport! I think respect will just come over time by educating people and showing them just what cheerleading is. So many people still don't know much about cheer therefore they don't respect it and still only see stereotypes.

Well than, especially good to know is that the Universities supporting the sport are the pioneering members of the NCATA (one and the same). They are supporting opportunities, respect may or may not be an outcome but honestly who cares. What matters is that they respect the sport enough to fund it and take care of their student-athletes. If I am a parent, I respect this commitment to properly fund and support the skill sets at the collegiate level with all of the resources provided in the same manner as a basketball, hockey, lacrosse, soccer, golf , and bowling teams. Do you care enough about bowling, for instance, to be glued to their every development, and thus giving it the attention that bowlers may or may not think they deserve? I highly doubt athletes in other sports fret about respect first and foremost above the ability to participate in something they love. When a hunk of junk piece of journalism hits the newstand as in the recent ('Gimme a Why?") people need to understand that the response from the Cheer Extreme coach was the real story. The intelligent story. The story that deserved respect. She gets to know that every day she effects change for young athletes. That kind of respect has life long repercussions compared to one slimey piece of journalism.

 

[Mightymouse34]

Well than, especially good to know is that the Universities supporting the sport are the pioneering members of the NCATA (one and the same). They are supporting opportunities, respect may or may not be an outcome but honestly who cares. What matters is that they respect the sport enough to fund it and take care of their student-athletes. If I am a parent, I respect this commitment to properly fund and support the skill sets at the collegiate level with all of the resources provided in the same manner as a basketball, hockey, lacrosse, soccer, golf , and bowling teams. Do you care enough about bowling, for instance, to be glued to their every development, and thus giving it the attention that bowlers may or may not think they deserve? I highly doubt athletes in other sports fret about respect first and foremost above the ability to participate in something they love. When a hunk of junk piece of journalism hits the newstand as in the recent ('Gimme a Why?") people need to understand that the response from the Cheer Extreme coach was the real story. The intelligent story. The story that deserved respect. She gets to know that every day she effects change for young athletes. That kind of respect has life long repercussions compared to one slimey piece of journalism.

I think your missing the original point here...its cool that the university's are taking interest in cheer now, and athletes are being respected that was not the point. The point is WHY do we need to change cheer to get that respect? Cant the university's just adapt UCA or NCA all girl format and make it NCAA capable. Its nothing to do with the university's, its the people changing the sport for unseen reasons... Its not Cheerleading there adapting....its a whole different sport. So personally this is an insult to us cheerleaders because the message there sending is "what you do is not a sport, so we are gonna create something very similar but much better and re-name it, so it can be called a sport". University's already respect their cheerleaders, like University of Kentucky and Oklahoma State cheerleaders get great respect from the institutions and also athletic benefits such as personal trainers tutors and such. So why do we need these new sports ( in my opinion that is what they are) to replace traditional cheerleading? Why cant traditional cheerleading exist in NCAA??

 

[mdcheerdiva]

The current format can not exist because the sport is unorganized, they do not have 1 championship that all schools participate in plus a whole host of other reasons.

 

[ztaprincess]

That could have easily been done though. Take parts from both UCA and NCA college nationals and form 1 National out of it. There was no need to change the format to what these two have done. Take stunting and baskets from UCA and tumbling plus pyramids from NCA. Then add jumps and dance just so the routine comes together. A routine can be put together with both UCA and NCA and work really well, look at Team USA from ICU in 09. They had 2 coed coaches, one from UK and one from UofL. They put their minds together and made a routine that fit both styles together. If they can do that then why can't STUNT or NCATA do it?

Why did both STUNT and NCATA feel the need to completey change things to look nothing like UCA or NCA aside from the routine they do at the end of the meet?

I love that they are both striving to get the sport recognized by Universities and the NCAA, but with these new formats I really don't think it is going to catch on like they hope it will. There is little to no excitement from what I can see from videos. Most are now coming from allstar cheer so this would be a big step down for them. It also bothers me that there are tons of super talented coed teams out there that are being overlooked because they have boys. Why should the girls get scholarships and the boys don't?

 

[coachrah]

I think your missing the original point here...its cool that the university's are taking interest in cheer now, and athletes are being respected that was not the point. The point is WHY do we need to change cheer to get that respect? Cant the university's just adapt UCA or NCA all girl format and make it NCAA capable. Its nothing to do with the university's, its the people changing the sport for unseen reasons... Its not Cheerleading there adapting....its a whole different sport. So personally this is an insult to us cheerleaders because the message there sending is "what you do is not a sport, so we are gonna create something very similar but much better and re-name it, so it can be called a sport". University's already respect their cheerleaders, like University of Kentucky and Oklahoma State cheerleaders get great respect from the institutions and also athletic benefits such as personal trainers tutors and such. So why do we need these new sports ( in my opinion that is what they are) to replace traditional cheerleading? Why cant traditional cheerleading exist in NCAA??

I am certain I am not missing the point. Perhaps you remain unaware of the court ruling last summer (although well crafted marketing sure can be confusing at times as well as the "play" on the word cheer/cheerleading/competitive cheer). Quinnipiac was a competitive cheer only team...not a cheerLEADING team. Perhaps you did not receive the "Dear Valued Customer" letter. The point is that Varsity fought for the 2.5 minute routine to remain an activity.

In this spirit post: http://spiritpost.com/notebook/2010/07/bill-seelys-response-to-the-decision/
note that they are referred to as a cheerLEADING team which they were not. More importantly, note that USA Cheer's President was the expert witness and he stepped in to PROTECT traditional cheerleading which he maintained is not a sport even if the sole mission is to compete. Even prior to the case he has maintained that for cheer to be a sport, it had to have a different name and look (not the 2.5minute routine)...again to protect traditional cheerleading as an activity. Here is an article from 2004 just a year and than some removed from when Varsity went from being publicly traded to private equity:
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B04EFDE153FF936A2575BC0A9629C8B63
(also good to note that he did not control the allstar competitive cheer industry at that time...but somewhere along the line allstars biggest competition became the "cheerLEADING Worlds" Third time I posted this curiosity.Who named it so? Why?