The FEU Cheering Squad regained the throne they lost last year, reclaiming the UAAP Cheerdance Competition championship this Season 86 with their Super Mario-themed routine on Saturday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
FEU won the Season 84 CDC but was on a very different circumstance as it was during the compressed athletic year with the league still dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.
For head coach Randell San Gregorio, this title was much sweeter as it also shushed the non-believers that put an asterisk in their Queen-themed performance during the “bubble season.”
“Syempre iba yung saya noon. Ngayon parang mas may katarungan ngayon yung championship namin,” said San Gregorio after leading the FEU Cheering Squad to their fourth championship in league history.
“Unang una nung bubble 15 lang yun eh tapos short lang yung six months lang kaming champion tapos nadethrone kami kaagad so at least ngayon maeenjoy namin yung isang buong taon na champion kami,” he added.
During Season 84, the performers were limited to 15 compared to the normal 25 dancers. Duration was also cut to three minutes from the usual five to six minutes routine.
There were also no drum squads allowed and the audience area was also limited, with only 12,522 fans attending the league’s biggest special event that season.
“Iba pa rin yung 25, pinakamaganda talaga yung 25 kasi marami ka talagang magagawa tapos mas masaya kasi punong puno yung arena so at least ngayon masasabi na namin na nagchampion kami na kumpleto lahat kasi nung bubble diba limited lang yun,” said San Gregorio as they performed in front of a loud 18,122 fans inside the Pasay arena.
Their cash prize also increased with many sponsors entering the CDC this year.
In their past gold finish, FEU amassed P90,000 – P50,000 from the league and P40,000 as the Skechers Best Performance.
This time, Morayta’s Cheering Squad collected a whopping P250,000 prize with P100,000 coming from the league and Dunkin’ while also sweeping the five special awards, getting P30,000 from each.
Most importantly, FEU was shooting for the gold back in Season 84. This year? It went to the MOA Arena with no expectations but left with the biggest trophy and the heaviest pocket.
“Mas masaya kasi di ka nageexpect tapos dumagdag pa yung mga special award na hindi rin namin inexpect talaga,” said San Gregorio.
