In the world of sports, fall means football. It’s a big deal around this area but football isn’t the only game in town. Competition cheerleading also is a fall sport and many local high school cheer squads have been hard at work for many weeks preparing for the season.
Cheerleading for high school-based teams has basically been divided into two groups. Spirit teams are designated squads which cheer at football and basketball games. Competition teams may also be cheerleaders for certain sports but these days, the competition squads have developed into units that are skilled, precise and very athletic. A two and a half minute routine for competition squads features tumbling, stunts and jumps which are evaluated at competitions by a panel of judges.
Harris County High School’s competition cheer team is sporting a new head coach. Brantley Sawyer recently took over the reins of the Tigers’ program and is eagerly looking forward to the cheer season. In The Game High School Sports Magazine is featuring Sawyer and her cheer athletes in the Sports Zone for an opportunity to get a sneak preview of their expectations for the year.
In The Game: When did you begin your coaching career?
Brantley Sawyer: This season!
ITG: How long have been the coach at Harris County High School?
BS: I have been the coach at HCHS since tryouts in March! I am extremely excited to tackle my first year as the coach at HCHS. This is where I cheered, and I used to tell my coaches that I would be coaching this squad one day! Now that I am the coach, I feel a huge sense of responsibility to make my former coaches proud and to make every season one the girls will never forget. We are in the beginning stages, but we are building something special that I am extremely excited about!
ITG: Are you a teacher at HCHS?
BS: I teach third grade at Pine Ridge Elementary, another school in the Harris County school system.
ITG: In your opinion, what makes competition cheer a sport?
BS: I am always discouraged by the lack of respect that competition cheerleading gets from people in the sports world. But I also know that anyone who argues that it is not a sport has never tried to do a routine. If they had, their opinion would be different. Any sport requires its athletes to condition, so their bodies are in top physical form and train for movements that are specific to that sport, cheerleading is no different. These girls condition like crazy and continue to work on the skills they need to have to be a part of our routine. Anyone can run out on a football field and kick the ball, but only those who have trained to kick it between the goalposts are going to be able to do so. The same can be said for these girls. Anyone can run out on a track and yell a cheer, but very few people can run out on a floor, throw their friend in the air several feet, jump in the air and flip their body in a multitude of ways or stand in the air on top of other people’s hands while pulling their leg over their head. All of those things require specialized training and years of practice. These girls are athletes because of the work they put in all year, the training they have to make the squad and the physicality it takes to make those two minutes and thirty seconds memorable.
ITG: How many cheer athletes are in your competition program?
BS: Between the JV competition squad and varsity squad, we have 34 athletes.
ITG: Are there any particular athletes on your varsity squad to watch this season?
BS: All of them, obviously! We have built an excellent squad this year and mixed it with new ideas and a new conditioning program that is going to pay off big time when competition season gets here. The amount of talent that we have this season is exciting, and I cannot wait to show people wha we are made of!
ITG: Do you have an assistant coach or someone who helps with the cheer program?
BS: I do not have an assistant coach, but thankfully Tara Hale(the JV competition coach) and I are working very close with one another to provide support for each other as well as the two squads. We both agree that the relationship between JV and varsity is crucial, and we are focusing on building that relationship this season. The success of a varsity program is based on the athletes that are developed in the JV program and without a good relationship between the two, both programs suffer. On top of separate practices, the girls practice together as one large squad multiple times a week. Practicing together helps them to bond and create relationships they would not have the chance to if we kept everything separate. We know that creating this type of relationship between the two squads will long benefit the Harris County Cheerleading program.
ITG: How long is the competition cheer season?
BS: Competition season begins the first week in September and ends the second weekend in November.
ITG: How many competitions will your cheer squad compete in this season?
BS: We will compete in six sanctioned events throughout the state, then the regional competition, and finally the state competition.
ITG: What is the best thing about coaching at Harris County High School?
BS: The passion that people in our community have for the school is amazing. We never have to wonder if we will have enough fans in the crowd because we know they will be there to show us their love without a doubt. When I first got this position, I had so many different people reach out to me with pieces of advice. Anyone who is lucky enough to coach in this county gets a built-in support system. Not to mention the constant help and guidance that Tara gives me! We are also very fortunate to have the overwhelming support of the parents and school system. They help us in so many different ways, and we are so grateful for all that they do to help us as a squad!
Personal Bio
Name: Brantley Sawyer
Age: 26
Family: My parents (Scott and Kim) and brother, Seth
Hometown: Harris County
Education: Masters in Early Childhood Education
Athletic background (sports you participated in high school/college): Varsity football/competition cheerleader throughout high school
Job/Position: 3rd grade teacher at Pine Ridge Elementary; Varsity Cheer Coach, Harris County High School
Favorite past time: Any time spent laughing with friends
Person you most admire: My grandmother
Columbus Valley/Sports Zone/August 2015
Brantley Sawyer
Harris County High School
Hamilton, Georgia
By Beth Welch
Photos by Jerry Christenson
