The Washington cheer team is part of UW Spirit, along with the UW Dance Team and Harry the Husky. The Huskies compete in the Big Ten. The cheer team has 30–35 athletes who do partner stunts, group stunts, tumbling, sideline cheers and dances. It competes at UCA College Nationals in the Division IA GameDay and Traditional categories. UW publishes its tryout details on its own spirit site, uwspirit.com, rather than the main athletics site.

2026 Tryout Timeline

• March 2: tryout registration due, along with a letter of recommendation.
• April 3: medical forms due. They’re emailed to you after you register, and you can’t try out without them.
• April 17–19: tryouts, in person.

As of September 29, 2026, uwspirit.com still showed these 2026 dates and listed the cheer application as closed. Check it for the next cycle.

Required and Preferred Skills

Tumbling

Every athlete performs a standing and a running element.

• Standing, on a dead mat:
  • A standing back handspring (required for flyers).
  • A standing back tuck.
  • Preferred: a standing BHS back tuck, a standing full, and two back handsprings to a tuck, layout or full.
• Running: preferred passes are a round-off BHS back tuck, and a round-off to a layout or full.

Partner stunting

• Toss extension.
• Liberty, stretch and arabesque, with a full down.
• A two-stunt connected sequence.

You’ll be assigned a partner at tryouts.

Group stunting

• A quick-up extension and a quick-up single leg. Flyers must include a heel stretch.
• A sequence of your choice that includes a release skill to extension, at least one full-twisting skill to extension, and a dismount of your choice. For example: hand in hand, press full around to lib, arabesque double down.

Game day and jumps

• Fight song: taught at tryouts and clinics, and it requires a toss extension.
• Sideline chant: also taught at tryouts and clinics.
• Standing tumbling: a back tuck, with a full preferred.
• Jumps: a toe touch, right and left front hurdlers, and a pike.

What the Team Does

The cheer team supports football, volleyball, gymnastics and men’s and women’s basketball, plus other athletic and community events. It also competes at UCA Nationals.

How to Prepare

• Register early. In 2026, the March 2 deadline came well before the tryout, and your letter of recommendation goes in with the registration.
• Flyers: the standing back handspring is required. Also make sure your heel stretch is solid for group stunts. See our flyer guide.
• Bases: practice twisting skills to extension and a clean two-stunt sequence. See how to base.
• Jumps: practice front hurdlers on both sides. See how to improve jump height.

Frequently Asked Questions

When are UW cheer tryouts? The 2026 tryouts were April 17–19, and registration closed March 2. Dates for the next cycle hadn’t been posted as of September 29, 2026.

Do I need a letter of recommendation? Yes, submitted with your registration.

Is a standing back handspring required? For flyers, yes.

How big is the team? 30–35 athletes.

Related Resources

• University of Oregon Cheerleading Tryout Guide
• Oregon State University Cheerleading Tryout Guide
• College Cheerleading Tryout Guides Directory

Source: UW Spirit, Join the Team (2026 cheer tryout requirements). Last checked September 29, 2026.