At midcourt, dancers line up in ten rows. Their moves are choreographed on the spot to the beats of Christina Aguilera’s “Ain’t No Other Man” over the PA system. Dance coach Corine Lewis methodically and relentlessly shouts an eight-count to the dancers who have never worked together before. Yet with each count, this regimented formation grinds, grooves, and gyrates as one body. As they dance, individual women in the background are thrusted sporadically skyward. These prospective stunt team members stand nervously about eight feet in the air on the hands of male stunters, hands that may never have held anyone aloft before. Each misstep brings doubt and fear of going home.
“I don’t know how some of the girls do it,” says Andrew Seagoe, a tumbling coach for the team. “I’ve seen some tears.”
Patrolling the grounds during tryouts is Coach Raish, a woman with a lifetime of experience in cheer. Raish feels a special sense of stewardship towards the Oregon Cheer program. She has spent the last thirteen years molding it to her specific vision, one that emphasizes overall crowd leadership and performance as much as routines.
Being a cheerleader is more than “just standing in one spot and looking perfect,” says Raish. She wants a more enthusiastic, interactive group involved in the outcome of the game — a group that goes above and beyond, both physically and emotionally, to motivate the crowd. “I’ll say, ‘Go to the crowd,’” says Raish. “Split off from where you are, get into the crowd, get up in the crowd, and do whatever it takes to get them on their feet.”
To recruit this “crowd leader,” Raish seeks people who can match the enthusiasm and intensity of a thrilling come-from-behind victory. They must also have it in them to generate energy when the Ducks are safely ahead in a game.
Being a cheerleader is more than “just standing in one spot and looking perfect.”
“I am hoping that I am choosing the people who are going to represent the university in a good way,” Raish says. The Oregon cheerleader must be in shape but not necessarily have a specific body type. According to Raish and other squad members, there are those with years of cheer experience and development, especially women dancers and stunters, and then there are those who come from other sports, such as gymnastics, dance, rugby, football, or track. Traditionally, male stunt team members follow the latter route. Limited by the lack of opportunities afforded to them at the collegiate level in those sports, they turn to cheerleading to retain that connection to sports and competition that would otherwise be lost to them.
Once on the squad, cheerleaders must devote themselves to a great deal of work. “There are practices almost every night of the week,” says co-captain Erin Burris. “There’s a huge commitment.” On top of that comes tumbling and lifting, as well as factoring in the extra workouts and individual practices for self-improvement. It’s a commitment and endurence test that lasts throughout the year as one sports season yields to the next.
“People don’t believe us,” says Seagoe, “but it’s tough.”
Most importantly, cheerleaders must be willing to become part of something higher than themselves. “Basically most of the squad kind of drags in, and it is an amazing transformation that happens within four hours before game time,” Raish says. They transform from tired college students into energetic cheerleaders before game time, even if that requires a façade. “We have our private lives, and sometimes things don’t go very well.... Sometimes that is very difficult,” she says. “They have to leave their problems and leave their disappointments at the door.”
Above: Writer Jay Shenai learns a University of Oregon cheerleading routine.
As they stand at center court, auditionees can see the bright lights and vibrant colors of ads on the scoreboard. This arena — seen on television countless times — looks smaller: Seats are closer, the backboards are nearer, and the ceiling is lower. The banners of past glories for the men’s and women’s teams hang perfectly still from the rafters. Eventually more than 9,000 fans will pack this place, with all eyes and cameras focused on the floor. Only a lucky few will get the chance to find themselves in front of that crowd. “I came in as one of the quiet ones,” says Yanagawa. “But I came out of my shell.”
Raish wistfully stares at a late-seventies photo of a vintage fire truck covered in balloons careening across the fifteen-yard line at Autzen Stadium. In the fire truck are cheerleaders in cowboy hats who toss miniature footballs in all directions. The idea of homecoming is a tradition that has gone away, says Raish.
In place of the casual squad walk-ons are girls as young as five and six years old who train in cheer stunts and dance competitions.
Having evolved in recent years from the casual innocence of its past towards a highly competitive, professional era, cheerleading has mirrored many niche sports that have been affected by increased exposure and popularization. In place of the casual squad walk-ons are girls as young as five and six years old who train in cheer stunts and dance competitions. Some parents who have the time and money sink significant amounts of both into camps, coaches, and tournaments, grooming their children into competitive performers. Once they make a team, those who cheer face heightened pressure to look good longer and to perform better. Pressures of appearance are nothing new to this sport. “Cheerleading has an element of vanity to it,” Raish says.
With national cable sports channels and Internet communities devoted to cheer, the trend towards professionalism looks to last. In this way, cheerleading follows a path already paved by the school sports they cheer.
“That was my passion, that’s what I was here for,” Yanagawa says. “To perform and to pump the crowd up.” As a team captain, Yanagawa not only had a chance to perform but also to lead on the biggest stage of her life. “I was never the leader of anything, or in charge, or organizing anything, so this was a big accomplishment for me.”
After graduation, she is considering either moving to Japan or staying in Portland and trying out for the NBA’s Blazer Dancers. She will face a world of possibilities with the same enthusiasm she always did for the Ducks. These cheerleaders will take the confidence, athleticism, and positivism that they have gained from cheer and approach center stage in the future endeavors of their lives, but this time as the main attraction. And someday, they may return to the crowd at Mac Court — the crowd they once faced every game — but as alumni.
Cheerleading is a sport that clings to those who join. “They have such affection for this program,” Raish says. “I truly believe they want to give back the same thing they think they got out of it.” With her volunteer coaching staff of former squad members and ex-cheerleaders, Coach Raish prepares to set the course for Oregon Cheer — a course paved over a century.
