He tackles, sacks - and cheers

It's 3:30 p.m. on a Tuesday afternoon, and like most sprint football players, sophomore Hasani Sinclair is making his way to practice. Unlike any of his teammates, however, when practice ends at 6:30, he doesn't head home or go out to dinner.

He goes to cheerleading practice.

Sinclair, who walked on to the sprint football team last fall, decided to try out for the cheerleading team the following spring after taking a class with a cheerleader.

"I met Mary [Dear] in class and then went to the Brown basketball game and saw her cheer there," he said. "I talked to her about cheerleading, and then one day in class, she told some of us to try out for the team. We went out on College Green to practice, and the rest is history."

Sinclair was originally hesitant to tell his sprint teammates about his new team, not knowing what to expect from their reactions.

"There are a lot of stereotypes about cheerleaders," he said. "I had this pipe dream that I wouldn't tell the coaches at all, but then during warm-ups one day, one of the coaches asked me how cheerleading was going. Everyone has cracked a joke about it by now, but it's always in good fun."

At first, some of Sinclair's teammates thought that his decision to become a cheerleader was a practical joke.

"When I first heard he was a cheerleader I couldn't believe it," freshman nose guard Doug Pires said. "I thought they were just joking because of how nice he is and the fact that he is there to congratulate anyone and everyone on a job well done."

All kidding aside, his teammates know that his commitment to both varsity teams is something to be respected.

"I remember one time when some of the guys... said, 'He's probably the only football player whose sack dance consists of pom-poms and throwing people in the air,'" Pires said. "It takes a lot of courage to be a male cheerleader, especially when you play football, too."

In his first full season as both a football player and a cheerleader, Sinclair enjoys the different perspectives each team has offered.

"My cheerleading teammates are always worried that I'm going to injure myself during a game, and if I fall down during a routine or something, they rush over to me and ask me how I'm doing," he said.

"When I'm in a [football] game and I get hurt, it's different. I just have to suck it up and keep on going."

Football has been a part of Sinclair's life since middle school, when he joined the team because it was something to do after school.

And although Sinclair did not consider playing football when applying to colleges, his love of the game was reignited when he came to Penn and became more familiar with the sprint football program.

"I had heard about sprint in high school and that a couple of schools had sprint teams... and my freshman year roommate was on the team, which is how I got into it," Sinclair said. "The coaches here have established a very successful program, and we get to play on Franklin Field, one of the most storied fields in college ball."

This fall, Sinclair has been starting at defensive tackle, in addition to seeing playing time on special teams.

"Sinclair is a good football player," sprint coach Bill Wagner said. "He's very athletic, with good speed and agility, and he's quite strong, which I'm sure helps him as a cheerleader too."

But above all, Sinclair's attitude seems to be a key factor in why his teammates respect him as both a football player and a cheerleader.

"He's intense and very focused on the field," sophomore defensive end Alex Gormley said. "He always does what he has to do, a really hard-nosed player. Off the field he's so genuinely nice, always positive and never complains. He's just a really good kid and dedicated to everything that he does."

And despite the obvious differences between football and cheerleading, Sinclair believes that the two sports are complementary to each other in more ways than others may assume.

"I had to be back at Penn two weeks early for cheerleading preseason," he said. "By the time football preseason started in September, I was already in pretty good shape from cheerleading practice."

Even with the time and commitment demanded by both football and cheerleading, Sinclair is truly enjoying himself.

"I woke up one morning during preseason and realized all I do is practice, going between alternating cheerleading and football sessions," he said. "But it's a labor of love. I have fun doing everything.

"My roommates never see me between class and practice and games and they just think I'm crazy. But if they only knew how much fun I'm having."

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