Head In The Game: Banning stunts could lead to banning contact sports

There are many reasons students go to Ball State games besides the team itself. The food, probably not; friends, maybe; the cheerleaders, yes.

I am an avid fan of the cheerleaders at Ball State University. It's not just that they're attractive, but because of their athletic ability.

The University of Nebraska has cracked down and enforced a new policy on what their cheerleaders can and cannot do.

The art of off-the-ground stunts was banned by Nebraska in an opportunity to reduce the number of injuries. Should we ban tackling in football?

If we eliminated tackling from football, that would certainly decrease the number of injuries in the sport. Let's decrease the physical contact in the low post during a basketball game.

It's all part of the game.

Cheerleading involves just as much physical strength as many other sports played at colleges today. It takes a lot of talent to do all the acrobatics involved in the sport.

Trust me, I've tried.

I'm 6-foot-4 and about 15 pounds over what I should weigh. I have no hand-eye-coordination and usually hurt myself when my feet leave the ground. My tumbles are ugly.

That just gives them more respect.

Nebraska made the regulations because of a 1996 accident that paralyzed a former cheerleader. Nebraska and the cheerleader agreed to a $2.1 million settlement last year.

The co-captain of Nebraska's spirit squad told the Associated Press that there was more to cheerleading than "standing there waiving pom-poms."

The only other Division I school to have these regulations is Duke.

It is a shame because there is more to cheerleading. They get the fans excited, at least some of the time. It is fun to watch them be thrown in the air and make those pyramids.

Nebraska is restricting its cheerleaders to doing little to nothing.

The women are limited to dancing and holding signs. The men are limited to carrying the big red "N" flag and using the megaphones for cheering.

So, pretty much, Nebraska took all the athleticism from cheerleading because they are afraid of getting sued again.

Colleges should always look at safety issues that involve all sporting events, but not remove the athleticism from the sport all together.

If Nebraska continues with this trend, their athletic department will include chess and thumb wrestling. Wait, thumb wrestling may be too risky.