Recreational Sports

A day in the life of freshmen Danielle Cormier can be hectic at times. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, she spends her days rehearsing with the OSU band. On game days she is focused on giving her best performance on the field. She spends most of her remaining time attending classes, studying and socializing. She’s from Jamestown, North Carolina. She’s a freshman and trying to explore everything Beaver Nation has to offer!

Following in the footsteps of her older sister, a former feature twirler at the University of Tennessee, she began baton twirling at the age of three. Now she is one of two feature twirlers at OSU. Danielle stumbled upon OSU while taking a college interest test in 7^th grade. Ever since then she was always determined to become part of Beaver Nation. 

The idea of performing for thousands seemed daunting to her at first. Performances last for seven minutes at times, while both twirlers choreograph their own routine to the bands musical selection. Cormier loves creating choreography to songs she loves such as *NSYNC’s “Bye, Bye, Bye” but she still describes the moments before she steps out onto the field as nerve wracking. This nervousness fades quickly though, as Cormier describes “It brings me an indescribable feeling and I just turn on once I get on the field. It becomes a second home to me.”

Even though much of Cormier’s time is filled with performances and practices, she knows that balance is the key to success at Beaver Nation and in life. Moving across the country was a drastic change, but she is excited to be on the west coast and able to be on her own. Keeping up with friends from home has been easier than she expected, as she stays in the loop through texting and Skype. While maintaining those relationships, she is also constantly meeting new people-- whether it’s at her dorm, through twirling, or in class.

Keeping an open mind is also something that’s been instrumental to her transition, “If you keep your mind open, you’re more likely to make friends, be closer to others, and find more opportunities.” Cormier is making sure to do just that by constantly trying new things, while still pursuing her lifelong passions. As a political science major, Cornier is excited to get involved beyond the football field, and cannot wait to get involved in groups such as ASOSU. She is also incredibly excited to explore her new home state of Oregon, which she describes as being “Natural, spread out and beautiful.”

As she starts on her new journey here at OSU, Cormier maintains a sound body and mind. She is staying balanced and true to herself, while also branching out to explore new people and new experiences. Although she admits her schedule can be overwhelming at times, Cormier is focused on just taking it all in, one day at a time.