All-Star Why An Execution Score Is The Most Important Thing In Cheerleading

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newcheerdad said:
So let me throw this question out there - what is the right balance between rewarding difficulty and encouraging proper execution in a scoring rubric?

I love this question. I think execution scores need a rubric. If coaches know that even the tiniest flail, knee bend or balance check will land them in a low execution bracket, the harder they will work for precision, and ensure teams compete in their correct level. I'd rather see stacked divisions of level 2 srs than all the furious flailing I currently have to suffer through at level 3.
 
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So let me throw this question out there - what is the right balance between rewarding difficulty and encouraging proper execution in a scoring rubric?
I love this question. I think execution scores need a rubric. If coaches know that even the tiniest flail, knee bend or balance check will land them in a low execution bracket, the harder they will work for precision, and ensure teams compete in their correct level. I'd rather see stacked divisions of level 2 srs than all the furious flailing I currently have to suffer through at level 3.

NCA Allstar had the best solution, IMO. Execution isn't really a rubric. It should be an equal reward based how much you can earn in difficulty. NCA gives you a .5 to start with. If you have average execution, you stay where you are. If you execute perfectly, you go up! They said a 1.0 in execution is OK to get at competition (that is a good thing). They also said getting a .1 is also possible. That is a full range for a judge to reward your difficulty, but competely negate that because your execution was not what it should be.

this would not work for worlds, but worlds has a more flawed scoresheet.
 
The event producers have the most power to prevent excessive risks to safety.

If teams get penalized for poor execution at all competitions by the same scoresheet, then coaches will naturally clean up their progressions and skill execution. They will be forced to condition better to improve individual technical execution. In the long run this is the best injury prevention we could hope for.

I just wish they could come to agreement with the USASF that this is the right thing to do for the safety of our athletes and implement it sooner rather than later.
 
This is why there needs to be a more adequate leveling system in place for college. (I believe this was mentioned in another thread recently)

When you go to Cheersport, they have College Level 4 and College Level 6, which are pretty close to the NCA College split of Intermediate and "Regular".... But are only 2 levels enough? I think the "death of college cheerleading" rants that I've seen on here could really be quelled if there were a leveling system a little more like USASF. It would encourage more college teams to spring up, or more non-competitive teams to throw their hat into the competitive arena, or more schools to add athletes to their programs if there were something like:

College 3,4,5- Split between All-Girl, Small Coed, and Large Coed but NOT NCAA divisions
College 6- Division 1A, 1, 2, and 3 splits for the "true" collegiate level 6 division and AG, Smoed, Coed splits.

Add a grid similar to NCA All Star or Cheersport, you would have college coaches really focusing more on majority skill for one of those levels than trying to push everyone's skills into an L4 or an L6 box.

Who likes it? :)
 
I deff miss when I used to watch teams and it was rare for stunts to fall and/or tons of tumbling busts....now its almost to the point that teams that HIT stand out and nearly all the other teams have a fall/bust. Im over it! I would love to watch a team do 1 or 2 full ups/or all straight ups versus sloppy, messy, bad timing entries.
Next...
 
The event producers have the most power to prevent excessive risks to safety.

If teams get penalized for poor execution at all competitions by the same scoresheet, then coaches will naturally clean up their progressions and skill execution. They will be forced to condition better to improve individual technical execution. In the long run this is the best injury prevention we could hope for.

I think a lot of coaches have the mentality of skill first, form later, which I understand in some cases (small gyms with a mixed group of talent). Thats why I think summer practices are great for this. You have all the time in the world to condition for proper execution. That in turn leads to safer routines which I am a big fan of. :)
 
I've always said, if its not perfect, I don't even want to look at it. If my team hits their routine perfect, at least I'll know they are all going home happy, feeling like they did everything they could, and they will be back next year.
 
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The issue is scoresheets that don't reward technique blatantly. Execution HAS to be its own separate category.

Where is Ms Archie on this one? I think that is an change that most Cheer companies won't fight because it is cost affective.

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NCA Allstar had the best solution, IMO. Execution isn't really a rubric. It should be an equal reward based how much you can earn in difficulty. NCA gives you a .5 to start with. If you have average execution, you stay where you are. If you execute perfectly, you go up! They said a 1.0 in execution is OK to get at competition (that is a good thing). They also said getting a .1 is also possible. That is a full range for a judge to reward your difficulty, but competely negate that because your execution was not what it should be.

this would not work for worlds, but worlds has a more flawed scoresheet.

In reading the NCA/Varsity scoresheet guidelines, I'm a little fuzzy on the difference between execution and deductions and how they work together.

http://nca.varsity.com/pdfs/vas_scoring_nca.pdf

Hypothetical example: My daughter's team does majority back walkover/bhs in level 2. The technique is by and large good, except for one girl who falls to her knees on her backhandspring. In reading the scoresheet, the team would get to the high end of the 4-5 point range for the skill, plus up to one extra point for technique. But they'd also lose at least .5 points, if not 1 point, for the fall - which means that one tumbling bust negates the entire technique point. Is that correct, or am I completely misreading that?
 
A couple questions, since I'm just starting to learn about the whole realm of college cheer:

Does UCA College Nationals score execution?
Do you think that the lack of execution in most of these routine comes from the fact that they only compete once per year (throwing a routine together for one competition instead of training it all year?)
 
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In reading the NCA/Varsity scoresheet guidelines, I'm a little fuzzy on the difference between execution and deductions and how they work together.

http://nca.varsity.com/pdfs/vas_scoring_nca.pdf

Hypothetical example: My daughter's team does majority back walkover/bhs in level 2. The technique is by and large good, except for one girl who falls to her knees on her backhandspring. In reading the scoresheet, the team would get to the high end of the 4-5 point range for the skill, plus up to one extra point for technique. But they'd also lose at least .5 points, if not 1 point, for the fall - which means that one tumbling bust negates the entire technique point. Is that correct, or am I completely misreading that?

They will judge the execution of all the skills, not the mistake (so you are not double dipped). So your fall will get a deduction, but if it was attempted and the rest done with high execution you will get a good execution score. That is not to say your execution won't be slightly affected by the fall, but one girl on her knees should not kill your score.

A couple questions, since I'm just starting to learn about the whole realm of college cheer:

Does UCA College Nationals score execution?
Do you think that the lack of execution in most of these routine comes from the fact that they only compete once per year (throwing a routine together for one competition instead of training it all year?)

UCA college nationals has the most vague scoresheet currently. All it says is 'Stunts: 25 points'.

And you just get rewarded. You dont know how, why, what, when where is worth what. You have to 'guess' based on what was done at camp and what others are doing what is what you need to win. Judges pretty much have free reign on that one.
 
! I would love to watch a team do 1 or 2 full ups/or all straight ups versus sloppy, messy, bad timing entries.

I'd rather watch that on a level 4 team. If youre level 5 then you need to get your $h!+ together and learn how to hit!
 
UCA college nationals has the most vague scoresheet currently. All it says is 'Stunts: 25 points'.

And you just get rewarded. You dont know how, why, what, when where is worth what. You have to 'guess' based on what was done at camp and what others are doing what is what you need to win. Judges pretty much have free reign on that one.

I am friends with someone who has judged UCA college nationals several times (but not the 2 past years because she had a baby)
But she said that the judges are told they must take execution and difficulty into account but are not given set numbers to go off of. She said that she splits it 10 - 15.
 
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I'd rather watch that on a level 4 team. If youre level 5 then you need to get your $h!+ together and learn how to hit!

And that right there shows that team is probably not level 5. And then the coach can properly adjust and go to the appropriate level and things are SAFER!
 
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