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Rice’s Brown to cheer at UT
By Phillip Barnhard
After cheering for the Bulldogs for the past three years, Rice senior
cheerleader Jordan Brown must soon adapt to rooting for a new mascot.
Brown learned Tuesday that after trying out for the University of Texas
cheerleading squad over the weekend, she earned one of the six spots open on the
2007-2008 Longhorns co-ed squad.
Brown, a cheer captain for the Bulldogs, said she could not believe the news.
“I have always liked UT,” Brown said. “It was kind of one of those things where
you see them and hear about them but you never expect to be a part of that. It
was kind of shocking.”
According to Rice cheerleading co-sponsor Patti Pitts who delivered the good
news to the senior, Brown will be the first Rice student to continue a
cheerleading career at the collegiate level.
“She’s a great kid,” Pitts said. “It was a big honor to tell her.”
Brown said she has trained at Corsicana Tumbling Academy for the past year and
had been prepping for the UT tryouts the past couple months. While in Austin
over the weekend, she survived Friday’s cut to 15 finalists and went through a
Saturday filled with interviews. She and five other prospective UT freshman
found out they were named to the squad Tuesday.
Jordan is the daughter of Rice football coach Ray Brown and Rice cheerleading
co-sponsor Sheri Brown. The Brown family has been at Rice for three years.
Despite the transition from cheering for a Rice Bulldog Stadium crowd that can
reach a capacity of 1,600 to a Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium of more
than 80,000 including a national television audience, the Rice senior suspects
she won’t be shy during those Saturday’s as a freshman in the fall.
“I love it first of all,” Jordan said. “I think it’s the excitement that you are
looking around and cheering for all of that, you can’t really explain it.” Notes:
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