Texas A&M cheer took the mat for the first time this season at the Legends Event Center in Bryan in front of a small, local crowd at the MaXout Heartland Kaua Cheer and Dance Competition on Feb. 15-16. The team now looks to reclaim the national title after falling short at the National Cheer Association, or NCA, College Nationals in Daytona Beach, Florida, in April 2024.
While not being officially judged according to the NCA guidelines, coach Atosha Rampy was excited to debut the routine choreographed by nationally acclaimed cheer choreographer Dahlston Delgado, who is known for his work on Netflix’s docuseries “Cheer.”
“You know, we’ve been doing it in the same space for several weeks now,” Rampy said. “And so it’s just about putting it on the floor and being able to see what we can adjust from there.”
The squad replaced some higher-level skills, including specialty tumbling passes, twisting dismounts and inversions. Despite the adjustments, the Aggies did not “hit zero” — every team’s goal of a perfect routine with no deductions or safety rule violations. A&M would have received building-fall and building-bobble deductions had the routine been officially judged.
Competing in the all-girl intermediate 1A division, A&M cheer won national championships in 2018, 2019 and 2023. After placing seventh in the 2024 prelims, the Aggies received an overall score of 94.713 to finish fourth.
MaXout Heartland Kaua has been hosted in Bryan since 2021. It allows the A&M squad and rookies to get comfortable in a high-energy environment with a brightly-lit stage, loud music, a long panel of judges and a cheering home crowd.
“This is just like a starting point for us, and so I think from here we’re gonna go back, and we are gonna put back in some higher-level skills that we’ve been working on that aren’t quite ready just yet,” Rampy said.
The squad hosted a winter clinic on Feb. 22 in the archery room of the Student Recreation Center, which was open to college recruits, local youth, family and fans.
“I think this is gonna be a great year for us,” Rampy said. “I think we’re gonna do well, so it’s exciting.”
New black uniforms were revealed to the team just before the competition. Rampy explained the squad had no idea what they were getting, but noted everyone was excited and happy with the new look.
“I think they’re beautiful on the floor,” Rampy said.
This season is “bittersweet” for biology senior Taylor Oliver. She has been cheerleading since she was seven years old and has competed for the Aggies since her freshman year. Oliver is the team’s fundraising and merchandise officer.
“Soak it all in,” Oliver said. “It goes by a lot quicker than you think. Before you know it, you’re a fourth year, and you’re performing for the last time.”
A&M cheer will next perform at American Cheer Power on March 9 at Moody Gardens in Galveston and at Cheer America March Money Madness on March 22 at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio.
