Category: Spirit

On Drills=Skills Show 2 David, Sean, and Shea discuss Standing Fulls. The show opens with discussing the prerequisites required for a standing full. Then Sean Guzman addresses proper techniques for the standing full. David Petty gives some drills for proper arms and legs and Shea Crawford looks at some troubleshooting methods.

Shea Crawford is the Tumbling Director at Midwest Cheer Elite, which has several locations, originating in Ohio. The back handspring is such an important skill in cheerleading.  It’s used in standing and running tumbling.  There are multiple variations and connections prior to or following the back handspring throughout levels.  This being said the development of…

Coaches, On or before next Tuesday, the Block Schedule and Final Team Listing will be released. Since there have been several questions lately in regards to division splits, I wanted to clarify NCA’s process. Throughout this entire journey, we’ve remained compliant with the USASF mandates, as well as our own internal philosophies and processes. We’ve…

Cheer & Dance Updates Scholarship Opportunities – USASF Scholarships are available to young athletes to help offset expenses associated with participating with USASF member programs. Share the opportunities with your athletes! Deadline to apply is March 1, 2017 Young Athlete Scholarships Are These Dates On Your Calendar Yet? – Plan ahead and connect with USASF…

On the first Drills=Skills show, Sean Guzman, David Petty, Shea Crawford & special guest Debbie Love discuss the changes to the tumbling rules which will start in August, 2017. Highlights: Level 1 – Changes to round off connections Level 2 – No turning after back handsprings Level 3 – Now requires a clear pause or…

Eastside Middle School will represent the U.S. in the Inaugural International Cheer Union Junior World Championship Memphis, Tenn., January 30, 2017 – USA Cheer, the national governing body for cheer in the U.S., has announced that Eastside Middle School from Mt. Washington, Kentucky, will represent the U.S. at the International Cheer Union (ICU) Junior World…

January kicked off a new year with a new President. Here’s the cheerleading news we found interesting. The Star-Telegram published Downtown Fort Worth Sparkles for UIL Spirit Championships. The Cleveland Clinic published Cheerleading: Where the Injuries Are Less Frequent, More Severe. WSET posted Community Rallies Behind Cheerleader Diagnosed With Brain Tumor. Varsity.com posted the 2017…

Sean Guzman is a Team Coach and Tumbling Coach at Top Gun in Florida. Being one of the most basic fundamental tumbling movements, back handsprings are also one of the most difficult skills to master. Flexibility, strength, precision, timing, are all some of the key factors when performing a back handspring. Lack of shoulder flexibility…

Six deserving U.S. teams will be awarded At Large bids to compete in the Jr. Dance Division at The Dance Worlds! If your team wants to apply for qualification, read all the details here. Deadline for submission is March 10, 2017.

USASF Scholarships are available to college bound seniors and to young athletes to help offset expenses associated with participating with USASF member programs. Share the opportunities with your athletes! There are 2 types of scholarships, College Scholarships (open to college bound seniors) and Young Athlete Scholarships (open to athlete members). The first deadline for the…

The USASF released the Cheer Rules and Age Grid for the 2017-2018 season, along the updated Program Definition. The rules, age grid, and program definition will be effective August 1, 2017. USASF Cheer Rules – 2017-2018 (with Comments) USASF Cheer Age Grid – 2017-2018 USASF Program Definition

David Petty is the Tumbling Director at Cheer Extreme Raleigh in North Carolina. Favorite drills and progressions I like to use simple “jump back” drills. Using a small sit with an exploding jump back onto an elevated mat, or mats. For a strong arm swing, there are numerous drills for this. You can use a…

UCA and UDA College Nationals were held January 13-15  at Walt Disney World. Full coverage can be found on Varsity TV. Cheer Champions Division IA Coed – University of Kentucky Division IA All Girl – Indiana University Division I Coed – Morehead State University Division I All Girl – University of West Georgia Division I…

Sean Guzman is a Team Coach and Tumbling Coach at Top Gun in Florida. Standing fulls have always been a trickier skill for the average cheerleader to master. Even some of the most elite athletes in our sport have some sort of technical issue prohibiting them from having that picture perfect standing full. Lack of…

David Petty is the Tumbling Director at Cheer Extreme Raleigh in North Carolina. When should you start teaching a standing full? I recommend after the athlete has consistent jumps to tuck and after they have mastered a running combination to full, possibly even a double. Favorite Drills My favorite drills starting out would be doing…

Shea Crawford is the Tumbling Director at Midwest Cheer Elite, which has several locations, originating in Ohio. Prerequisites Prior to starting to introduce a standing full to an athlete I require the athlete to have an open or no grab standing tuck.  This demonstrates the athlete possesses the height and strength to begin working on…

December, along with 2016, has left us. Here’s the news that ended the year, including the news of the year. Everyone reported on Cheerleading being granted provisional Olympic status, including Reuters, Inside the Games, The Courier-Mail, BBC, USA Today, USA Cheer, and USASF. The Courier-Mail also published IOC Can’t Be Serious: Cheerleading and Muay Thai…

November came and awarded the first bids to Worlds. Articles regarding the Supreme Court case between Varsity and Star Athletica continued in The Hill, the Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. KATU published Student With Down Syndrome Achieves Cheerleading Goal: ‘It Means the World’. The Omega published Cheerleaders Find Balance Between Art and Sport.…

October has left us and we are now in Worlds bid season for dance teams. Several cheerleading groups engaged in national anthem protests, including groups from the University of Michigan, Omaha Central HS, and Cornell HS. One of the Omaha Central cheerleaders wrote a guest piece for the Omaha World-Herald. ABC News published Cheerleader Hit…

September came in quietly, but ending with another loss in our community. Taunton Daily Gazette published Tragic Anniversary: Bridgewater State Student 2nd Person Killed on 495, about the loss of 19 year old cheerleader Hayley Sandford. Cynopsis Media published Varsity Brands Talks Good Cheer. Athletic Business published No Longer Sidelined, Competitive Cheerleading Evolves. BET published…

August came and went, unfortunately taking a couple members of our community with it. Former Louisville cheerleader Shanae Moorman died in a car accident, as reported by the Louisville Courier-Journal. CBS Chicago reported the 7-Year-Old Girl Who Died At Cheerleading Camp Had Rare Heart Defect. Lindsay Benton, a Wilmington, NC, area cheerleader, died following a…

July came and went, along with the final 4 USASF Regional Conferences. Shane Womack shared a personal story titled How Cheerleading Saved My Life on CheerDaily.com. The Chicago Tribune published Park Ridge Girl Dies After Collapsing at Cheerleading Camp. The Lexington (KY) Herald-Leader published Former Kentucky Cheerleaders’ Engagement Photo Goes Viral via Kentucky.com. WACH published…

June came and brought the first USASF Regional Convention along with some news: The USASF released the first version of the 2016-17 rules and began requiring membership numbers for legality rulings. The USASF held their first Regional Convention of the summer, but there is still time to attend 1 of the remaining 4. Varsity All…

May came and went with Summit and US Finals: USASF sent out information regarding applying for the Regional Advisory Boards. USASF held webinars regarding the Regional Conventions. Varsity announced judges training in Louisville, KY (June 26th), Anaheim, CA (July 9th), and Dallas, TX (August 13th). USASF is holding Music Copyright & Licensing webinars to explain…

Worlds, I mean April, came and went: USASF announced Worlds live streaming information and released a Worlds app. Worlds information, including results, are available on USASF.net. The University of Washington became the center of attention due to a cheerleading poster, reported by People and Sporting News. TMZ reported Herschel Walker My Son’s a World Champ…