College College Tryouts Not Based On Skill? Fair Or Not

[cheermom96]

A couple of friends' daughters just tried out for a college team at a Florida college. Cheerleader A has amazing flexiblity, ( has always been a point flyer) and elite tumbling(2 to double, running double, standing full on spring floor- standing full, running full on hard). Cheerleader B no flexibility and not a consistant flyer, threw a tuck in tryouts but a lil smaller. Long story short..... Cheerleader B made team while cheerleader A did not.
So is it fair that colleges are obviously not judging on skill??? I love both girls but cheerleader A is a stronger cheerleader in all areas. How is this fair and why would anyone want to tryout?

 

[hiyoe6]

Does the college compete? And if they do, do they compete at a large National like UCA or NCA? Some colleges, especially those that don't compete, are still doing cheerleading from the 50s and 60s where it was more about how pretty you are than what skills you have. Some colleges have their cheerleaders be more like professional NFL cheerleaders (or dancers) than actually tumble and stunt.

 

[Ashley]

A couple of friends' daughters just tried out for a college team at a Florida college. Cheerleader A has amazing flexiblity, ( has always been a point flyer) and elite tumbling(2 to double, running double, standing full on spring floor- standing full, running full on hard). Cheerleader B no flexibility and not a consistant flyer, threw a tuck in tryouts but a lil smaller. Long story short..... Cheerleader B made team while cheerleader A did not.
So is it fair that colleges are obviously not judging on skill??? I love both girls but cheerleader A is a stronger cheerleader in all areas. How is this fair and why would anyone want to tryout?

College cheerleading isn't just about competing. Was there a cheer or spirit aspect of the tryout? Maybe cheerleader B was a better "cheer" leader than A. And, juset as hiyoe6 said, some teams judge girls based on how pretty they are as well.

 

[NJ Coach]

School cheer is sometimes more about being an ambassador for the school. Maybe B presented herself as more professional or had the look they want. Skill sometimes has very little do with it, especially if they aren't a competitive program. They might just be looking for someone who they feel can represent the school better. If they do an interview as part of tryouts, maybe that's where B made up the difference in skill.

 

[cheermom96]

No they do not compete and there was no interview process either. Cheerleader A was told her look wasn't what they were looking for. Still competitive or not, to be judged on "your look" vs skill seems off to me. Both are great dancers and are probably equal in spirit. They both have GREAT peppy personalities, perfect for cheerleaders....haha

 

[hiyoe6]

Well there you have it. You already knew the answer when you started this. Cheerleader A wasn't the look they were going for. I don't see how thats confusing. The hardest thing for allstar parents and even cheerleaders to grasp about college is that not EVERYONE has a spot on the team (like allstars) and I'd say the majority of college cheerleading isn't competitive.

Some college tryouts even have collegiate appearance on their scoresheets. And it can mean either the judges think your pretty or don't like your tattoo. It is completely up to them. Researching different college cheer programs is really essential.

 

[Kentucky Girl]

Definitely. Schools like Kentucky, Alabama, UCF, LSU, Tennessee, Memphis, Mississippi State, Ohio State, Minnesota, Hawaii, Morehead State, Delaware, West Georgia, Columbus State, Northwest Missouri State, Louisville, Oklahoma State, NC State, SFA, Weatherford College, and TVCC are competitive squads that look for the cream of the crop whereas squads that don't compete such as Florida, Auburn, UCLA, and Notre Dame look for talented but not excellent high school cheerleaders.

 

[cheermom96]

Well there you have it. You already knew the answer when you started this. Cheerleader A wasn't the look they were going for. I don't see how thats confusing. The hardest thing for allstar parents and even cheerleaders to grasp about college is that not EVERYONE has a spot on the team (like allstars) and I'd say the majority of college cheerleading isn't competitive.

Some college tryouts even have collegiate appearance on their scoresheets. And it can mean either the judges think your pretty or don't like your tattoo. It is completely up to them. Researching different college cheer programs is really essential.

I knew why; the comment was did people think it was fair or not. My daughter has a few more years before I need to worry about college but it still concerns me all the same. Colleges don't choose football players for their appearance so I don't see how this is fair. Why have a tryout? Why not just do a beauty pageant, since skill has little to do with the decision. In my oppinion this is exactly why the debate over cheerleading being a sport is such a struggle.

 

[Ashley]

I knew why; the comment was did people think it was fair or not. My daughter has a few more years before I need to worry about college but it still concerns me all the same. Colleges don't choose football players for their appearance so I don't see how this is fair. Why have a tryout? Why not just do a beauty pageant, since skill has little to do with the decision. In my oppinion this is exactly why the debate over cheerleading being a sport is such a struggle.

But at some schools cheerleading isn't a sport and doesn't make any pretense of being one. Why are you surprised if the team isn't a competitive team? If you tryout for a competitive team you will be judged based on your skills.

 

[hiyoe6]

Exactly @ashley. The reason football players are chosen based on their skill is because they're a sport and are there to win. Cheerleaders are there to support and if the program thinks that a pretty girl is more important than a strong skill-set that is their decision. I'm surprised this is even a conversation. Are allstar parents really totally unaware that their are actually little to no place to grow? Allstar teams are totally skills based and are out to compete and win. The majority of the college cheer programs are solely to support the teams they cheer for. And if a college team DOES compete they might not actually be competing to win. A lot of college teams do it for the experience because the top three teams in each division are so dominant.

The debate over if cheerleading is a sport in the eyes of a University is simple: NO!
Also, at the school you are talking about... maybe what they meant by tryout was beauty pageant. If there is a part of the tryout info saying they need to be game-day ready and all have to wear the same thing then thats a clear way to know whats expected... looking pretty.

 

[retiredl5cheer]

To avoid this, send your daughter to a competitive school with a competition based agenda. I have been on both types of teams. My original coach at my school was all about the looks. If you had a full but she thought you were ugly, you were out.

Our new coach has been around for a little over 2 years and the program has already completely changed. He does not care what you look like if you have the skills. I am not a great judge of appearance because I think that every girl can be beautiful...so of course I think we have a pretty squad anyways. However, our tryouts are based on skill and skill only because we are a competition squad.

 

[yojaehs]

Best thing about coaching college cheerleading is that you don't have to answer to parents. In order to avoid being upset at the end of your college tryout, do some research. Talk around, see what the school you are interested in prefers. If its a beauty contest, be prepared for that. If its skill, be prepared for that. But know that at the end of the day (unlike allstar) is that you are NOT a customer, so you have NO SAY in where your kid goes. Sometimes this is a good thing, sometimes its a bad thing but regardless it is College Cheer.