Game Day Live Unites Band, Cheer Teams in Competition

Editor’s Note: This article was written by the staff at Varsity Spirit, which can be accessed online at www.Varsity.com.

While game day, pep tunes and run-ons may seem like trivial pursuits to some, the intentional coordination of these three has significant ties to student engagement, classroom learning and ambassadorship. When the sights and sounds of a school show up, rehearse, travel and perform together, a message of belonging is communicated.

Students show up in their classrooms with the same intensity and drive as they show up to rehearsal; friendships between stereotypically polar groups become a model of collaboration; and the students as individuals feel more connected to their peers and schools than ever before.

“Varsity Spirit’s mission is to elevate the student experience,” said Bill Seely, President of Varsity Spirit. “What we know above all else is that when a student feels like they belong to something, they are more driven, more motivated and more willing to show up for their peers and their communities as the best versions of themselves. By having the cheerleaders, dancers and band members work together to create a great experience inside of the schools, then we believe they are more likely to become stewards of that mission; that they, too, will elevate the experiences of their peers as ambassadors, innovators and spirit leaders.”

A school that supports the spirit raising teams as more than a jukebox and backdrop supports the growth of student leaders who believe that their actions have impact in their hallways. To model what a thriving spirit community looks and sounds like when these groups come together as a cohesive team, Varsity Spirit created Game Day Live, the newest division at the UCA National High School Cheerleading Championship at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida.

Game Day Live was created in 2020 to unite two of the most visible and influential school groups – the band program and the cheer team – together in a unified show of school spirit on the competition floor. With Spring Station Middle School from Spring Hill, Tennessee as the inaugural champion, and Independence High School from Thompson’s Station, Tennessee to follow in years two and three, Varsity Spirit has seen the tremendous impact the division has had over its three years of competition.

“Game Day Live was a program-changing activity for us,” said Tyler Dieterich, Band Director at Independence High School. “Our students were treated like rock stars. We had the opportunity to compete on stage at Walt Disney World, but more importantly, the band and cheer programs are now closer than ever before. We both learned about the respect, hard work and discipline each group has in their programs. We grew within our school culture, and collectively created a more cohesive and collaborative school.”

The Game Day Live performance consists of four elements— Band Chant, Situational Sideline, Crowd Leading and Fight Song— combined in a three-minute performance by the pep band and cheerleaders, just like the current game day cheer format. The band will have an additional 30 seconds during both the “run on” and “run off” of the cheerleaders to be judged on playing original, spirited music.

“Seeing the 2022 Game Day Live Championship in person left everyone in the room with a significant impact of what this opportunity can do for students and athletes across the nation,” said James Weaver, Director of Performing Arts and Sports at the National Federation of State High School Associations. “The NFHS and Varsity Spirit share a joint mission and vision of student safety, student participation and student engagement. Game Day Live is the perfect reflection of those values.”

In 2023 the UDA National Dance Team Championship will now also offer a similar division and ask dance teams to invite their bands to participate in Dance Game Day. Like the cheer format, this division combines the band with their dance team, an already natural relationship, to showcase school spirit from a different lens. Learn more about the Game Day Live Championship at varsityperformingarts.com and viewing the 2022 Game Day Live Experience.