When it comes to wowing a crowd ... no one knows how to throw down quite like the BYU Dunk Team. This team works hard to bring the hype at BYU events and give back to their community.
The team is known for captivating audiences through explosive tricks. Peak athletic performance is just another day's work for them.
Kaden Dengin, a Dunk Team athlete, spoke on the rush of executing a dunk.
"When you're first starting out, it's definitely really scary because you hit this really powerful trampoline, and you go ten or fifteen feet in the air,” said Dengin. “You're like, ‘I hope I land on my feet, or at least I know how to fall.’”
Though they're most recognizable for their jumps, the team looks beyond the basketball hoop and into the community each and every week. Coach David Eberhard gave an overview of how the team works to strengthen the community.
“We visit at least two schools a week, sometimes more, and that goes through the entire fall and winter semesters,” Eberhard said. “We put on shows talking about what it means to be cougar built.’”
Even if some shots bounce off the rim, the unity and power the team embodies are outward symbols of what it means to be a cougar. Dengin spoke on why the team is so meaningful to him.
“These guys and girls on the team are some of my best friends now, and we definitely have built a culture of continual respect and hype for one another,” he said. “If people do miss or mess up sometimes, then we do our best to let them know we're here for you, we respect you, and we can keep going.”
Students interested in joining the team should keep an eye out for tryout announcements and work on skills like trampoline jumps and ball-handling.