Editor's note: A graph has been removed that improperly attributed Code Red as being the only team in the Mid-American Conference and the state of Indiana to make to make it to the Collegiate National finals.
While most students are prepping for a tailgate and home football game on a Saturday in September, Madyson Lee, a freshman Code Red member, is awake at 6 a.m. getting ready to perform.
Lee clears out her schedule for game days. She gets full glam before meeting the rest of the team at Scheumann Stadium for warmup. She does a full face of makeup, including eye shadow, eyeliner, fake eyelashes and the signature red lipstick. She curls and teases her hair, is dressed in her uniform and eats breakfast all before the 9 a.m. call time.
On the field, the girls mentally prepare, stretch and run through routines. The team then participates in the “Cardinal Walk,” where the football team walks into Scheumann.
One of Lee’s favorite parts of game days is the Code Red tailgate since family and friends can attend, bring food and hang out with the girls. The team then performs at Charlie Town until it’s time to prepare again for the game at 2 p.m., where they perform on the field, dance sideline routines and cheer the whole game.
Lee’s family is typically at the games, so once she’s done performing, they’ll go out to dinner together. Afterward, she’ll go back to her dorm and relax or work on homework.
When Lee isn’t at games or practice, she’s either working on academics or teaching dance at Cole Academy in Muncie. Lee is a biology pre-veterinary student with a minor in health humanities. On top of it all, she’s also a part of the Honors College.
“I remember my first football game; I was so insanely stressed. They’re such long days,” Lee said.
Code Red is the official dance team of Ball State. They perform at football games, men's and women’s home basketball games, and men's and women’s home volleyball games. Code Red does various community appearances for Ball State and Muncie. They also compete in the National Dance Alliance and Collegiate Nationals in Daytona Beach, Florida.
They will compete in the Division 1 Advanced hip hop category in April.
Captain Ashley Read said hip-hop is one of the most competitive categories.
Lee said it can be hard when Code Red doesn’t get recognition, which she said is something dancers and cheerleaders have always had to overcome. The team makes it look “easy and effortless,” and that’s what they’re supposed to do, Lee said.
“I’d argue we train harder and more than half of the athletes across the world. We put so much dedication into what we do,” Lee said. “Dance is not only such a physical sport, but it is probably one of the hardest mental sports there [is].”
A dancer’s success is based on someone else’s opinion, which can be hard for others to understand, as the sport is so subjective, Lee said. She can’t remember the last time her body wasn’t sore.
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Lee said the team doesn’t compete to be considered athletes. They do it because they love it and know that they’re making an impact.
“We always say, ‘The work is worth it.’ That’s one of the National slogans. It’s worth it to be [at nationals]. We’ve worked so hard,” Read said.
This is Read’s fourth year on the team. She danced competitively in high school and knew she wanted to join Code Red when she arrived at Ball State. She said Code Red has historically been one of the best college dance teams in Indiana and has a strong legacy.
The captain is voted on by the team in the summer before the fall semester. Being captain is a catch-all position, Read said.
Between coordinating plans between the team and coaches, sending out game and practice agendas, teaching dances, filming routines and leading appearances, Read has her hands full.
As a member of the Chi Omega sorority and a coach of a high school dance team, Read said being Code Red’s captain has reinforced her time management and leadership skills.
“I remember being a freshman and really looking up to the senior captain … She was kind of everything I wanted to be,” Read said. “This opportunity has given me the chance to be a good role model for underclassmen.”
Code Red begins practicing in the summer. Unlike most Division 1 sports, they don’t have an off-season.
Before the fall semester, the team practices once or twice a month during the summer, along with virtual check-ins where athletes submit routines or skills they’re working on. This year, they had a choreography camp, and all athletes learned the various routine choreography prior to the first regular season practice in the fall.
Incoming seniors also attend Pro Action Dance in Las Vegas, Nevada, during the summer. At this convention, they learn routines and choreography that they bring back to Muncie.
The team practices three times a week for at least four hours, and each athlete is required to do two workouts outside of practice.
Lily Valadez, a sophomore member of Code Red, was a competitive gymnast throughout high school and danced when she was little. She always loved the performance and team aspect of gymnastics. Valdez said that leaving the team she competed with for 12 years was difficult, so she decided to take private dance lessons and try out for Code Red.
“I don’t think people understand how much time it takes to not only learn the dance but also clean the dance,” Valadez said.
Valadez originally didn’t make the team but jumped in mid-season after another member stepped down due to injury and has been a part of the squad ever since. It was a learning curve for her since she didn’t have as much dance background as her teammates.
“There’s just so much that goes into the routines that you see at game day, and it’s only a minute long … but there’s a lot of prep that goes into that,” Valadez said.
Currently, Code Red’s practices are focused on nationals.
“[Nationals] is the one time that we are doing Code Red for Code Red. We get to be dancing for ourselves to represent our university. So, that’s a really good way I stay motivated because it’s a lot physically and emotionally,” Read said.
Head coach Kaitlyn Molin said that at practice, she is most focused on preparedness for the team and making sure they are putting their best foot forward at all times. With college dance, precision is key. Things as simple as whether a dancer’s arm is at a 90-degree angle compared to an obtuse angle all matter, Molin said.
Molin said muscle memory is also vital so that their performance quality can come out. Not only is precision important, but Code Red has to captivate an audience.
Molin started dancing at three years old. In college, she was on Code Red for three seasons and was captain her last year. After college, she became an Indianapolis Colts cheerleader for five seasons and was a captain for three.
“We really pride ourselves on being a great game-day team,” Molin said. “Making sure that we’re executing at that type of level is what I look for when giving critiques.”
Read said the team tries to keep it consistent and upbeat, giving it “110 percent effort” every performance. She said she struggles with burnout, but her teammates are a big part of her support system.
The team is a sisterhood, and “Code Red for Life” is a special slogan that has been around for years, Read said.
“It’s remembering that we’re doing this because this is our family … I would do anything for my family, and I would do anything for my teammates,” she said.
From getting ice cream together, team sleepovers and going on vacation with each other, this team chooses to spend their time with one another consistently. Code Red has at least one or two team bonding events every month.
In February, they hosted their Galentine's event, where the team exchanged Valentine’s Day gifts and decorated boxes and cards. They also currently have “Bachelor nights,” where they watch ABC’s “The Bachelor” together every week. Before every practice, the team practices team mindfulness, where they pray and do a different activity that boosts team morale.
“I would not be the person I am today without [my] teammates … They push me to be a better athlete, a better friend, a better daughter,” Lee said. “We uplift each other in and outside of dance.”
Contact Jessica Bergfors at jessica.bergfors@bsu.edu.
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