Do you think there can be a new Champion?

[ShortAndFast]

Bluecoats are the most likely possibility. The advantages of the Big Three go beyond just great shows. They also have excellent staff retention, healthy financials, good recruitment efforts, and have proven able to field a quality product year after year.

Canton has proved this season that 2005 was not a fluke - they came out with an even stronger show than last year, and seem likely to improve on last year's finals placement. To win their first ring, they have to make sure that their organization can deliver at this level every year, and they have to look for a Really Good Show Design that will display their talent to best effect.

[crfrey71]

I think you have to be aware of the unknown. I think in 5 years, I would not at all be surprised to see the Academy win Div. I.

They are that good. This is not another Magic from a few year's ago. This corps has taken the slow methodical road to success and it's really building into something special.

[plugcatcher]

I believe Madison, SCV, and PR are the only ones who have ever won DCI Championships, and even then, not nearly as many as "The Big 3", BD Cavs, and Cadets, have.

Wrong. SCV has won 6 DCI championships, just as many as the Cavaliers.

SCV -- 73, 74, 78, 81, 89, 99

Cavies -- 92, 95, 00, 01, 02, 04

[ContraRich77]

There WILL be a new champion, and my money's on the Bluecoats. They have taken their momentum from last year onward and forward, and they mean business.

I for one hope they find that extra edge to slide them into the top this year. In my opinion, they have a championship winning show. Sure, maybe not as clean as BD or Cavies, but there's several weeks left to clean and those kids aren't fooling around. I hope they find a way to make it happen.

BLOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

[gottalovit]

While I don't think a new champion would happen this year, since Cavies and BD have such strong programs, I think in the next 3-5 years Bluecoats may be fighting for a championship. I also would not be surprised if SCV could be in the hunt in the next couple of years as well.

One nice thing about DCI is that is has been getting better each year from top to bottom. I think it would be cool to have a finals week where 3 different corps win on 3 different nights, and the top 12 in quarters aren't the same top 12 as in semis.

[bigwally8891]

While I don't think a new champion would happen this year, since Cavies and BD have such strong programs, I think in the next 3-5 years Bluecoats may be fighting for a championship. I also would not be surprised if SCV could be in the hunt in the next couple of years as well.

One nice thing about DCI is that is has been getting better each year from top to bottom. I think it would be cool to have a finals week where 3 different corps win on 3 different nights, and the top 12 in quarters aren't the same top 12 as in semis.

I hate to have my very 1st post on the boards make me sound like a “homer”…but I think the Bluecoats will take the championship within the next 3 or 4 years. They have come a long way over the past few years and the corps seems to be moving in the right direction both on and off the field. However, I am enough of a realist to know they haven’t paid all of their dues just yet. It’s going to take a few more years of proving they belong in the top 5 or 3 even before they can take that final step. I must also say that I have never been more proud of my corps and I can’t wait to see them in Madison.

[ApocalypseTissue]

Work your A S S off, then win.

[McCheese]

Yeah, I think we're about due for somebody bloo...I mean, NEW, to win. :P

[Achilles]

Sure, there can be. BD, Cadets and Cavies have found the formula for success year over year. As Star demonstrated, it's a multiyear effort to get to the top of DCI, and so, whomever wants to make a run at it, must realize that they need to plan for the long haul - there will be no flash in the pans in this sport. You have to build a robust organization that can withstand the ups and downs, can learn and grow and will not self destruct, just to get into the top 6 that have, in any given year, a reasonable shot at the title. There is only a little luck in this activity...the rest is planning, hard work and persistence.

It seems like Bluecoats have done just that. I suspect there are other organizations that have structured themselves in a way to ensure long term stability. And others that would fly away in the breeze if it blew hard enough - I'm not going to name names but I'm sure you can think of some.

[SFsmack]

Yeah, I think we're about due for somebody bloo...I mean, NEW, to win. :P

I wasn't around so much online during the Glassmen's three 5th-place showings--98, 99, and 01.... but was there the same talk of them possibly taking a ring? I remember there was this rumor about a goal of a championship in Toledo by 2001, but it never happened.

I'd like to see the Bluecoats continue improve until they are of championship quality... they definitely have the staff to do it. I mean...their percussion staff alone *has* won DCI trophies...