I have cheered for an award winning national champion team, and I have cheered for a team that did not win a single completion. If there is one thing I have learned in cheerleading, it is that life is about taking chances and acting is a chance I am willing to take. From the acting class I have taken in high school and being able to put on a show every Friday night cheering for my football team in front of my community, to the acting classes I will be taking in college; I am fully prepared for my future as, Victoria Haddox, Academy Award winning actress.
All summer we worked on my technique and accuracy. The first week of my sophomore football season the coaches took immediate notice to my improvement, I was then offered the opportunity to try out for the varsity by the head coach. I was very excited but also nervous at the same time, this was like a dream come true. My high school has a very rich tradition for football, and for a sophomore to play at the varsity level is rare. So the following week I worked out with the varsity and made the team.
I had cheered at American Elite from 4Th grade all the way to my freshman year in high school. I quit because I wanted to be able to get involved in my high school and doing competitive cheer was hard and very time consuming. Meanwhile in high school I got involved in Varsity Football, Basketball and competitive cheer and was also apart of Latin club and young life. Throughout my years of high school, I also completed a lot of community service and I loved to help out in my community from helping out in a special ed classroom to working with the SPCA and the battered women’s
Football is arguably the best team sport there is. You rely on your teammates every play and they rely right back on you. This is why, many times, teammates become almost like brothers throughout the progression of the season. This is what happened to me my sophomore season of football, we became a family. My sophomore season started with the possibility of me starting on defense as an outside linebacker.
When tryouts started, it was explained to all of us that the coaches would run drills in order to gauge our individual skills, and then place us in specific position groups. After the drills, which I did exceptionally well in, Coach Jones placed me in the receivers group. He told me that I was extremely fast, and that I would make a good receiver. It felt so good, not only making the team, but being singled out by Coach Jones as one of the better players on the squad. Throughout the next couple of weeks, the Mandalay Wolverines held football practice every day after school from 2:45 until 5:00.
He decided to pursue football and accepted a scholarship to play at the University of Notre Dame. Montana did not see much action until his sophomore season when he impressed his new coach in spring games before the regular season. He became the go-to guy late in the game during comeback situations. He led Notre Dame to two crucial comeback wins, including an incredible performance against Air Force that earned him the nickname “The Comeback Kid”---the nickname stuck to Montana for the rest of his career. He missed the entire 1976 season due to a separated shoulder but came back strong in 1977.
A couple things happened my junior and senior year that would change all of that. After my senior year of football, we had an awards ceremony for all of our accomplishments that year. One of the awards was the Ed Thomas Character Award. This was given to the senior football player that best exemplified good character on and off the field. I won the award and was completely thrilled that I received an award that honors Coach Thomas.
I played varsity football in my senior year where we had a great 9-2 season. As I go on to Fullerton, I only wish I had stuck to my intentions of playing all four years, instead of being influenced by other people, particularly the opposite sex. I have learned that it is important to stick to your convictions if you feel as strongly about them as I did. When I was part of the cross country team in my sophomore and junior years I did quite well and always gave it my all, learning the value of struggling to achieve by discovering more about myself and my abilities. The part of me I never thought existed gave me the confidence to know that anything can be accomplished with the right determination and desire.
I believe that I deserve one of your seven scholarships because I possess many positive leadership qualities. I am a good leader and role model to those around me. Throughout high school I have demonstrated leadership by participating and excelling in all four high school sports offered. For the first three years of high school football I did not play at the varsity level. I worked hard as a scout team player who consistently was chosen by the coaches to be the opposing team's best receiver.
In order to get into this program I had to write a personal narrative of why I wanted to be a teacher and I had to get a teachers recommendation. When I got the letter that said I was accepted I was ecstatic. This program has opened so many opportunities for me. For example, I get to work with teachers at the local elementary schools and inside the classroom. I get to do volunteer work at the YMCA, nursing homes, and food pantries at local churches.