Evynn Richard
Let us introduce you to the head coach leading the first STUNT team in Marshall University history.
It’s such an immense honor to be recognized as not only a head coach at Marshall — an institution with a decorated athletics history behind it — but to be the first STUNT head coach in history at this university. Being the first gives me a unique opportunity that most coaches across all of college athletics won’t be able to experience, and for that I am grateful. I’m really looking forward to building this sport within the state of West Virginia and specifically this program at Marshall — a legacy that will hopefully outlast even me.
When preparing to head coach my own program, I knew the athletics department just had to feel like a good fit. Prior to my trip to campus, I had already heard nothing but amazing things about Athletic Director Harrison, Deputy Director Campbell, and the rest of the athletics administration. The support and buy-in that I have been shown from Day 1 — before there was even a yes — was a factor that made me want to be part of this university over any other.
STUNT takes the athletic portions of cheerleading — the tumbling and stunting — and turns it into a four-quarter game format where two teams go head-to-head. Every university across the country learns the same plays from the governing body. With 32 total plays available, eight in each quarter. The score during the game is dictated on strategy for plays, technique and execution. Athletes are constantly trying to throw higher than the other team, hit harder, and showcase perfection — even when stacked on top of two or three other people — all at the same time. It takes an insane amount of discipline, athleticism, and strength to do it all — more often than not with a smile on your face, too.
Finding the right athletes who love the grind and want to build up a positive culture will be the most important factor for building this program up. There are plenty of athletes across the country that fit that mold. It’s just about finding them, teaching them brick by brick about the sport, and creating the mindset of being intentionally 1% better each day. Once we create that foundation, we put ourselves in the best situation possible to build towards success.
I’d like Marshall STUNT to have a reputation of being a competitively consistent program whose athletes are also kind people. Equipping athletes with the tools and mentoring they need in order to go into adulthood post college and feel they can make a positive impact in the world is a big pillar of mine as well. Not only do we produce great athletes here at Marshall, but also the next generation of people to make ripples in the outside world.
I’m definitely searching for athletes who are positive, who love having teammates and working toward a goal together, and who want to work hard because they love the grind. All athletes want to compete at the highest level in college, but I don’t just want athletes who desire the title of a Division I athlete. I want the athletes who work like DI athletes.
Not only do we produce great athletes here at Marshall, but also the next generation of people to make ripples in the outside world.Evynn Richard
I’ll be recruiting for the entirety of the 2026-27 school year so that we can hit the ground running with practices in Fall 2027. Our first games will be Spring 2028. This program, though new, will add depth to the Herd Athletics roster. The sport is fast-moving, action-packed, and showcases a unique athletic ability for these athletes. Herd fans — we have the ability here to be trailblazers, to have the best fan section in the sport of STUNT across not just all of DI, but the entire country. We have the opportunity to set a standard for what true DI athletics fan support for this sport should look like. How amazing of a legacy is that?
