How to Create a Game Day Plan for Your Cheer Team

Having an effective game day plan can be the difference between a chaotic sideline and a crowd-pleasing performance. Today, I'll walk you through the steps I used to create a successful game day plan with my team – one that you can replicate with your own squad!

1. Set Clear Goals for Game Day

Before the season even starts, define what you want to achieve. What are your team’s priorities? Is it to have more crowd participation, seamlessly call cheers, or maybe introduce stunts that make the stands go wild? Whatever your objectives, make sure they are clear to you and your team.

For my team, the goal was to be better at engaging the crowd and calling cheers with more consistency. This clarity set the stage for building our game day strategy.

2. Organize Your Cheers with a Game Day Worksheet

The key to a successful game day is organization. I developed a Game Day plan worksheet to help streamline our cheers, stunts, and overall sideline performance. Here’s how you can do it too:

• Break Down the Game by Situations: Offense, defense, timeouts, and general cheers each get their own category. Create a sheet for each of these scenarios, ensuring that your squad is prepared for any play.
• List Your Cheers Strategically: For each situation, identify specific cheers. For example, for offense, prepare cheers for first downs, touchdowns, and being in the red zone. For defense, focus on third downs, turnovers, and stopping the opposition.
• Include Necessary Equipment: In a separate column, list the signs, flags, or props needed for each cheer. This way, there’s no guesswork on game day. Everyone will know what they need to grab and when to use it.

Using this structure keeps your cheerleaders focused and ready for any moment. Plus, it helps you vary your cheers throughout the game, avoiding repetition and maintaining high energy from the crowd.

3. Use the Binder System

Once you’ve set your categories and cheers, compile everything into a binder. Put each sheet into a sheet protector to shield them from weather and wear. Organize the binder so it’s easy for your captains to navigate and call the appropriate cheer based on the situation. This system has been a game-changer for my team, providing easy access and a clear plan that keeps us energized and engaged.

4. Practice Your Game Day Plan

Now that you have a game day plan in place, it's time to put it into action. Regularly practice these cheers with your team during rehearsals, focusing on quick transitions between cheers. The more your team practices using the plan, the more confident and seamless they'll be on game day.

5. Assign Captains to Specific Responsibilities

To ensure your Game Day plan runs smoothly, designate captains for offense and defense. This splits up responsibilities and allows your leaders to focus on their respective areas without being overwhelmed. Two captains can take charge of offense, and the other two can handle defense. This not only promotes leadership skills but also helps each section of the game have dedicated attention.

Not every captain will come equipped with the ability to predict plays and know when to call the right cheer – that’s where the Game Day plan shines. Providing a structured yet flexible guide helps captains make quicker decisions, allowing the team to respond and cheer in real time.

The very first time we used the Game Day worksheet, my team called more cheers than they ever had in a single game. They followed the plan, stayed focused, and seamlessly moved from one cheer to the next.

Ready to Make Game Day a Success?

Download your free Game Day spreadsheet and get started on building a strategy that sets your team up for success. This tool will help you organize your cheers, empower your captains, and make sure your team is ready to perform and lead the crowd like never before:

GET FREE ACCESS TO THE SPREADSHEET