Tradition Defended as Cheer Team National Championship Victory Silenced
The Texas A&M competitive cheer team won the National Championship on April 6th for the second time in a row, threatening the hierarchy of reverence among student activities.
“It’s just not fair, and it doesn’t make any sense,” said junior finance major Brett Sears. “The football team has commanded every bit of publicity and attention for decades, and now some cheerleaders think their success deserves to be recognized?”
Cameron Morrow ’96 cites tradition as his reasoning for the snub. “People have been saying the cheerleaders should cheer at games, but that’s what the Yell Leaders are for,” Morrow said. “The only talent that belongs on the field is the football players. They may have won nationals twice now, but there is no way they should be allowed to outshine our boys.”
The captain of the cheer team, Mallory McIntosh, has been under fire since her team posted videos of themselves crying joyfully, celebrating their victory, and brandishing their trophy. “I was upset at first,” McIntosh said. “But after listening to the other side of the argument, I understand now. We may have earned this through grueling practices, personal sacrifice, and countless injuries, but the Texas A&M student body and fans can’t know what real success looks like.” Evidence of the achievement has been wiped from all media sources, and a gag order is to be placed on the topic within the next week.
Head football coach Jimbo Fisher weighed in on the debate, expressing his fear of repercussions from allowing the cheer team’s success to be showcased. “Next, the fans might actually expect the football team to win a championship too.”
—Broken Reed Arena
It’s 9:47 on a Thursday night. Your group project is due at midnight, and there’s one member who hasn’t added any of her work yet: Broken Reed Arena. She won’t answer her phone, but you know where she is from her Snapchat story — she’s faithfully cheering on the women’s basketball team. You say a prayer. Suddenly, at 11:53, her perfectly formatted portion of the project appears in the google drive, just in time for submission. No one knows how she does it, and no one dares to ask.