Sept. 13, 2024
Ferris State adding STUNT, a sport based on competitive cheerleading skills, as a new varsity team

Ferris State University is adding STUNT, a competition that incorporates skills derived from cheerleading, as a new varsity sport starting with the fall 2025 season.
STUNT is one of the fastest growing female sports in the country. Ferris State joins Davenport University and Purdue Northwest as Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference schools with a varsity team.
"We're thrilled to launch a new varsity sport and believe this provides an outstanding opportunity to add student-athletes to our university," Athletics Director Steve Brockelbank said. "This is an emerging sport that quickly continues to grow and is a great fit for our institution and department. It will also positively impact our cheer program and gameday atmosphere.”
The sport will become the 18th squad in Ferris State's athletic program lineup, and the first new one added in 25 years.
Brockelbank said Perrmella Harris will be the program's first head cheer and stunt coach.
"She rose to the top in the interview process and has a wealth of knowledge and experience, which will be essential in the launch of this sport at Ferris State," he said.
The sport is an exciting, head-to-head competition between teams who execute skills-based routines in various categories including partner stunts, jumps and tumbling, pyramids and tosses along with team routines.
"As the head cheer and stunt coach, I am deeply honored and excited to build this program under the athletic department as a NCAA sport that will allow the skills, hard work and athleticism to be shown," Harris said. "My focus will be to bless talented young adults who want to continue at the college level. I also want our program to engage with our community, cultivate a culture of excellence on and off the mat while aiming for accomplishments that make our university and alumni proud."
Harris brings a wealth of experience to the position. A certified USA Cheer coach, Harris brings more than 30 years of experience in coaching, tumbling and executive leadership to Ferris State.
Harris owned and operated the Metro Cheer Training Center for more than 25 years. The program won more than 100 local, regional and national cheerleading and dance championships.
She also coached Michigan High School Athletic Association girls competitive cheer and most recently spent time as an associate head coach of a Division I acrobatics and tumbling program. Additionally, she has served as an NAIA official.
Harris earned a bachelor's degree in communications from Madonna University and a master's degree in management and leadership from Western Governors University.
Harris has served as an executive board member of the Gamma Phi Delta Sorority and been the organization's second vice president. The 2023 Madonna University Distinguished Alumni Award recipient was presented with the 2023 AAU Lifetime Volunteer Member Award and earned the 2022 Livonia Chamber of Commerce Ambassador of the Year honor. She is also a two-time graduate of the NCAA WeCoach Academy and has been a board member for the city of Livonia/Westland.
The STUNT program represents the first sport added by Ferris State since the introduction of Bulldog women's soccer, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this fall and was first added in 1999.