This one’s different.

We sat down with Roger Schonder — co-founder of Stingrays, Team Manager for Atlanta Air (Pro Cheer League), and a 30+ year veteran of all-star cheer — to break down what’s REALLY happening behind the scenes.

From tryouts… to Worlds… to the future of the sport.

If you’re a cheer parent, this episode will change how you see everything.

We cover:

• The biggest misconceptions parents have about cheer
• What actually determines team selection (it’s not what you think)
• The reality of Worlds-level competition
• How the Pro Cheer League is changing the game
• Why development matters more than winning
• What separates elite programs like Stingrays

This is one of those episodes you send to every cheer parent you know.

🎧 Listen now and see cheer differently.

📲 Follow us:

Instagram: @cheerdadsunfiltered
Spotify: Cheer Dads Unfiltered
YouTube: Subscribe for weekly episodes

—

This is Cheer Dads Unfiltered

We’re here for every count

This week, we brought in someone who sees cheer from every angle…

Coach. Judge. Gym owner. Choreographer.

Brooke (Queen B Choreo) breaks down what really goes into building a routine and it’s way more than just dance.

We went in as first-year cheer dads…

and came out realizing we’ve been watching routines completely wrong.

In this episode, we get into:

👉 What choreographers actually do (it’s not just dance)
👉 How routines are built to maximize the score sheet
👉 Why most parents misunderstand scoring
👉 The difference between difficulty vs execution (and what actually wins)
👉 How small details decide competitions
👉 What happens when coaches tweak routines after choreo
👉 Behind-the-scenes judging insights you’re not supposed to know

Plus…

🔥 Hot takes on:
– Clean vs difficult
– Do coaches mess up routines?
– What really matters more: stunts or dance?
– The most overrated skills in cheer

If you’re a cheer parent, athlete, or coach…

This is one of those episodes that changes how you watch the sport.

🎧 Listen now on Spotify & YouTube

📲 Follow for more real conversations from the cheer world

We’re here for every count

This one hit different.

We sat down with Keenan (Cheer Dad TV), a 5-year cheer dad who’s been through the highs, the lows, and everything in between....and he didn’t hold back.

We get into what it actually feels like to finish a season, how to handle wins and tough losses as a parent and where a lot of cheer parents go wrong without even realizing it.

Keenan breaks down:

• How to push your athlete without burning them out
• Why kids need to feel both winning and losing
• The reality of cheer culture most parents don’t see
• and what it really means to show up as a cheer dad

This is one of those episodes that’ll make you think a little differently the next time you’re sitting in the stands.

If you’re a cheer parent - this one’s for you

🎙️ Cheer Dads Unfiltered
We’re here for every count

This one went deeper than we expected…

We sat down with comedian and cheer dad Jay Yoder and got into everything from parenting and perspective to what cheer has meant for his family.

From early struggles to moments that hit you in the chest. This is what it’s really about.

We also get into:
– The realities of cheer parent life
– Confidence and growth through youth sports
– Balancing family, work, and showing up as a dad
– The moments that stick with you forever

If you're a cheer parent, a dad, or just trying to figure it out as you go…

this one will hit

🎧 New episodes every Thursday at 6 am PT

Follow us:
Instagram: @cheerdadsunfiltered
TikTok: @cheerdadsunfiltered

We’re 15 episodes in… and somehow just crossed 1,000 streams 🤯

But more importantly we’re at the end of our first cheer season as dads.

In this episode we take a step back and reflect on everything we’ve experienced so far:

– First showcase reactions
– Daddy-daughter stunt class (round 2 😂)
– Regional Summit coming up
– and the big question every cheer parent starts asking…what comes next?

From not knowing anything about cheer… to being fully invested in it this episode is just three dads talking through what we’ve learned, what’s surprised us, and how this whole journey has changed us more than we expected.

If you’re a cheer parent (or about to be)… this one will hit

Be sure to like, subscribe and share!

📱 Follow us on Instagram

@Cheerdadsunfiltered

📺 Follow us on Youtube

@Cheerdadsunfiltered

Episode 14 gets real.

We’re diving into one of the biggest debates in competitive cheer right now… does “hitting zero” actually matter?

From judging controversies and teams playing it safe, to injuries that change everything mid-season, this episode goes deeper than just routines and scores.

We also talk about:

• What happens when a key athlete goes down
• The mental pressure these athletes carry
• Whether it’s worse to fail… or be the reason your team loses
• And the growing cost of competitive cheer

This one hits different. Less surface-level, more real talk.

If you’re a cheer parent, athlete, or just trying to understand the world behind the mat… this episode is for you.

🎧 New episodes weekly
📲 Follow, share, and tag a fellow cheer parent

Fresh off our viral episode with Judge Gabby… we put everything we learned to the test at Aloha.

Our girls hit their cleanest routine of the season.

No falls. No deductions. Full confidence.

…and we got 5th place.

Yeah. We’re still trying to make sense of it.

In this episode we break down:

• What it actually feels like when judging hits your own team

• Why “hit zero” doesn’t mean what parents think it means

• The reality of subjective scoring (and why it drives parents crazy)

• What we learned from Gabby’s judging breakdown and where we still question it

• The emotional rollercoaster of cheer comps (and why dads are getting hooked)

Plus:
🔥 Geoff's Hot Takes return (and they’re even spicier)
🔥 Are cheer comps overpriced?
🔥 Do uniforms secretly impact scoring?
🔥 Why cheer culture is dominated by moms and where dads fit in

and the biggest takeaway…

👉 Cheer dads are everywhere
👉 They’ve just never had a voice… until now

If you’re a cheer parent, a dad trying to figure it out, or just someone who loves real, unfiltered conversations…

This one’s for you

🎙️ Follow us on Instagram/YouTube and join the movement
We’re here for every count 💪

Welcome back to Cheer Dads Unfiltered!

In Episode 12 the dads finally stop guessing about cheer scoring… and bring in an actual judge to break it all down.

We’re joined by Gabby Mauro, a cheer judge, educator, and routine review expert who helps teams understand how routines are really evaluated.

If you’ve ever wondered:

• Does screaming “HIT ZERO” actually help?
• Do loud cheer parents affect scoring?
• What are judges REALLY looking for during a routine?
• Why do some routines place higher than others?

Gabby pulls back the curtain and gives us the real inside look at how cheer competitions are judged.

Along the way we talk about:

• Gabby’s journey in the cheer world
• How judging actually works behind the scenes
• Common scoring myths in all-star cheer
• What parents misunderstand about competitions
• Why formations and transitions matter more than you think

and of course… the dads still manage to ask the important questions about “farts and toots”

Whether you're a cheer parent, athlete, coach, or just trying to understand the chaos of competition season, this episode is packed with insights and laughs.

Huge thank you to Gabby Mauro for joining the show!

Follow Gabby:📲 Instagram: @scoresheetswithgabbymauro

🎧 Listen to Cheer Dads Unfiltered
Real cheer dads. Real conversations. No filters.

Follow us for new episodes every week.

📲 Instagram: @cheerdadsunfiltered