Cal State Long Beach cheerleading team stripped of title amid cheating scandal [Updated]
[Corrected, 5:30 p.m.: A previous version of this post misspelled the word "cheerleading" in the headline.]
The Cal State Long Beach cheerleading team forfeited its national title and its coach was fired after an administrator discovered that a former student competed with the team, officials said Wednesday.
The nationally recognized team competed April 9 and 10 at the National Cheerleaders Assn.’s competition in Daytona Beach, Fla., and won the title for its division.
But the non-student who competed had graduated in December and was ineligible to participate, said Christina L. Esparza, communications coordinator for Associated Students Inc. at Cal State Long Beach.
The non-student’s participation was revealed after the team’s advisor noticed him while watching a video of the performance.
The school has terminated its contract with Coach Eric Anderson, who had been with the team for 10 years, Esparza said.
“It’s unfortunate,” she said. “The team is a fantastic team, and I believe we would have won the championship anyway.... I just hope we come back strong.”
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-- Paloma Esquivel
EDITOR'S PICKS:
Wow, how could they not know that? lol you'd think someone would notice.
Posted by: Tai | April 23, 2011 at 10:45 AM
Seriously? The student graduated in DECEMBER and he was ruled ineligible? Where was his adviser back in September to tell the kid how to remain eligible for April championships? This is an easy fix - the kid doesn't take all the classes he needs to graduate during the fall semester. He takes all but one in the fall, takes that final one in the spring and this problem is now solved!
Personally I don't blame the coach - I blame the adviser. This team has won SEVERAL national championships. Whatever you believe about the competitiveness of cheerleading as a sport is irrelevant. You win national championships in your sport - you get what you need. Clearly this program needs a new academic adviser!
Posted by: with2ms | April 23, 2011 at 10:50 AM
I don't think they should blame and fire the coach.
How does someone who attends CSLB, is a cheerleader there, and even takes classes there know whether or not they are a student?
Posted by: Dan Marc | April 23, 2011 at 11:23 AM
I love to read all the comments by the "cheer" crowd who think this is a sport! It just cracks me up. I am sure it is very physical and I have no doubt that they are in good shape. That still does not make it a sport. This is just as much a sport as dancing competitions and pageants are.
Now to the story... Good for the school to do the right thing. I am not sure why no one caught it before, but at least they recognized their mistake and took corrective action. I would have to speculate that this was not the first time this happened with the coach, or the coach was aware of the issue and continued anyway because it seems a bit harsh for a first offense.
Posted by: fizzmaster | April 23, 2011 at 12:04 PM
Yikes! - my daughter got her MBA at Cal State Long Beach. Hope they didn't fudge her grades.
Posted by: John Henson | April 23, 2011 at 01:20 PM