Arshad Saleh Managing Editor

Every year, Orientees witness the peak of college spirit at the UTSU Cheer-Off. This year was no different. The spirit of the Cheer-Off is to embrace and highlight each college and division’s individuality, pride, and community through a friendly competition. More importantly, the event is significant for all incoming students because it’s one of the only opportunities in their entire university experience where the majority of first-year U of T students gather and mingle with one another.

The Cheer-Off luckily took place on a warm summer day, during a week when the overall weather was not forgiving to Orientation programming. The day before the Cheer-Off, Toronto experienced extreme weather, from hail to thunderstorms, throughout the evening. Although the weather was better on the day of the Cheer-Off, students still had to scream their hearts out under the scorching sun. Water stations around back campus kept students cool and hydrated as they prepared for the Cheer-Off to begin.

SMC marched in, with the Orientation Coordinators leading the way in the newly constructed “Mike’s Ark.” Faces were marked with paint, and “WHO’S YOUR DADDY?” was written across everyone’s arms. SMC was ready to win. When it was their turn to cheer, they started with the chant engraved on the backs of all their Orientation shirts, “Hoikety Choik.” Students cheered on fiercely until their final chant, “Who’s your daddy? St. Mike’s!”

SMC excitedly waited for the winners of the Cheer-Off to be announced after not securing second or third place, until the announcer finally said, “In first place: SMC!” Students celebrated loudly, chanting “SMC! SMC! SMC!” However, in the midst of the celebrations, the announcer corrected themselves, saying there was a mistake and Daniels had actually won first place.

Regarding the incident, Verona Odhiambo, VP Student Life of the UTSU, provided a comment to The Mike, “St. Michael’s College was mistakenly announced as the winner at the event. The judging itself was conducted by members of our team who were tasked with listening to each college’s cheer and evaluating them according to the established criteria. After the cheers, we sat down together to tally the scores that had been collected and determine the result. The mistake occurred, admittedly, when I announced the result publicly. With the event environment being extremely loud and a lot happening around me, I was slightly overwhelmed and announced St. Michael’s College as the winner. I take responsibility for that mistake, and apologize to St. Mike’s students who gave so much to the cheer for providing false hope and the confusion it caused for both St. Michael’s and the other colleges involved. Despite that moment, I thought the Cheer-Off as a whole was a great success. The energy from the colleges and students was incredible. It was one of the moments during Orientation where you could really see the different college communities come together and have fun.”

St. Mike’s loud celebrations led many not to hear the second announcement, causing confusion about who truly won. The importance of the Cheer-Off lies in fostering a positive sense of community at U of T and social connection, rather than competition itself. Was it necessary to award Daniels the winning title for the third year in a row after St. Michael’s College had already been announced as the winner? Was it necessary to retract St. Michael’s College’s first-place without any formal explanation or apology? Was it necessary to take a moment of celebration away from students who had already been told that they had won?

Regardless of the result, SMC performed well, showing that St. Michael’s College spirit is still strong. Despite the hiccups, the UTSU Cheer-Off remains an experience Orientees will remember for the rest of their time at U of T.