The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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44 ■ THE WOLFPACKER WHERE ARE THEY NOW? BY TIM PEELER athy Buckey was practically prohibited from being a pioneer. That's because the innovative and creative for- mer college cheerleader and legendary NC State coach kept coming up with ideas and moves that were too difficult for other programs to replicate. With her famous Wolf Wall — in which male and female cheerlead- ers formed a two-and-a-half per- son tall pyramid, with variations along the way — Buckey and her teams were imitated by competi- tion programs from all over the country, some of which were not up to the challenge of her complex ma- neuvers. "When we first started, there were no rules," Buckey said. "We were only lim- ited by what we could figure out how to do. And sometimes it took a long time and a lot of patience. We probably did our Wolf Wall 500 times before we ever attempted it at a game or a competition. "It took every other team about 10 years to figure out." Sometimes, others caught up. Some- times, they were unsuccessful at copying State's stunts. And sometimes the moves were limited by organizers of national competitions. "We started out every season thinking, what can we do this year that they will ban next year?" said Buckey, with a slight hint of pride. "They would try to bring us down to the level of teams that were not up to our level. A lot of the things we used to do are still not allowed." 'I Surprised Them' Buckey spent two years as a cheer- leader at Akron, then transferred to NC State, where her childhood friends, twins Dave and Don Buckey, had ar- rived in Raleigh to play football for Lou Holtz. She had started her cheerleader career as the 4-year-old mascot for her father's bantam football squad in Akron, Ohio, and progressed to junior high, high school and competitive team cheerleading. When she got to Raleigh, she was sur- prised at how rudimentary cheerlead- ing was at NC State. She was part of the cheerleading company that began HIGH SPIRITS Innovative Cheerleading Coach Created A Lasting Legacy At NC State " We started out every season thinking, what can we do this year that they will ban next year? They would try to bring us down to the level of teams that were not up to our level. A lot of the things we used to do are still not allowed." Buckey CATHY BUCKEY W H E R E A R E T H E Y N O W ? C Known for its precision and athleticism under Buckey's leadership, the NC State cheerleading squad won its first national championship in 1986. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS