This is your open Q&A thread for anything related to college cheer recruiting. No question is too basic. No question is too advanced. If you are thinking about it — ask it here. Coach Jay and Coach John respond regularly and the best questions get featured as their own post inside this category. To ask a question use this format: Name: Grad Year: Position: Question: This thread grows into one of the most valuable recruiting resources on the internet over time. Every question asked and answered here helps not just you but every athlete who finds this community after you. Ask everything. That is what this thread is for. — Coach Jay and Coach John

I’m officially almost 2 months post-op. As I’m writing this, I’m on my flight back to Birmingham after spending the weekend coaching in Indiana. For the first time since surgery, I went the entire weekend without my scooter. Twenty-one hours of coaching. Countless conversations. Countless breakthroughs. This recovery has been one of the most humbling seasons of my life. For a while, I wondered if my biggest fear had become my reality. Coaching has never just been what I do—it’s who I am. Then something hit me this weekend… Even when life takes away one of your greatest strengths, it can never take away your purpose. I may not be flipping yet, but I was still able to coach. I was still able to pour into athletes. I was still able to help change lives. John and I watched athlete after athlete break through mental blocks that had held them back for months—some for years. The crazy part? Most of them didn’t need a new skill. They needed someone to believe in them before they believed in themselves. Sometimes a five-minute conversation can change the direction of someone’s entire career. That’s why coaching matters. That’s why leadership matters. And that’s why I’ll never let adversity write the ending to my story. If there’s one thing I hope you take away from this, it’s this: Your circumstances do not define your ceiling. Your response to them does. Every setback carries an opportunity to become someone stronger, wiser, and more resilient than you were before. This comeback isn’t just about my Achilles. It’s about proving—to myself and to everyone watching—that you can lose your footing without losing your purpose. We’re coming back. Stronger. Smarter. More grateful. See you all at the top. — Coach Jay

Drop a win from this week big or small. New skill landed, a hard practice you pushed through, anything. Let's hear it.

Keep in mind this was my first day working with this athlete!!! Notice how in the first video she bends a lot in her knees and is squishy with her arms. The drill that you see on the tumble track is a really good way for you to understand how to maintain jumping back into a good handstand shape to create a stronger back handspring. I want some of you guys to try this and let me know if you feel or see a difference!

This thread is built around one simple idea... When you post your goal publicly the people around you become part of your accountability system. You are no longer just telling yourself you are going to do something. You are telling your community. That changes everything. Post your current skill goal using this format: Name: Current level: Skill I am working toward: My target date: Why this skill matters to me: Then come back and update this thread every time you make progress. Every rep. Every breakthrough. Every setback. Document the climb publicly and let Base Camp climb with you. When you hit the goal...post it here first! — Coach Jay