Every third weekend in January, the top college dance teams head to Orlando, Fla. and the ESPN World Wide of Sports complex to compete at what many have dubbed the “Superbowl of Dance.”
It is the most prestigious, impressive and competitive competition in collegiate dance, but what was once something only watched by the most dedicated fans and dancers has become an event that people all over the country look forward to every year.
With the rise of TikTok and the years-long rivalry between the Ohio State University dance team and the University of Minnesota dance team heating up every year, Universal Dance Association (UDA) Nationals have become one of the biggest events in dance.
This year, there were many routines that connected with viewers, even when they weren’t the ones that won.
“My favorite routine to watch this year was definitely Penn State’s jazz routine to ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You,’” said senior Ellie Wang.
Penn State was definitely popular with viewers, with many people noting it was one of their favorites. However, even though they had so much public support, they ended up placing 12th in the D1A jazz category, showing that the audience often disagrees with the judges.
“My favorite routine was Penn State’s jazz and LSU’s jazz,” said sophomore Shannon Farrell.
There were a few different controversial moments from the weekend. The first inkling that something was going to be different was when the University of Minnesota placed fourth in D1A Jazz Prelims Group B, something that nobody was expecting.
Then in the D1A Pom Semi-Finals, Texas Tech beat out both Ohio State and Minnesota for the top qualifying spot for their ultra clean, but simple routine.
“I was also surprised Texas Tech placed so high in Pom this year,” said junior Penny Martin, a sentiment that many people shared.
While Minnesota ended up taking the top spot, adding another championship to their now four year winning streak, Texas Tech took second place ahead of Ohio State.
During D1A hip-hop, everyone was looking forward to seeing how LSU would come back after their unexpected 6th place placement in 2025, and for UNLV, the reigning champs. By the end of the semifinals, LSU was in first with a swaggy and clean routine to Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show and UNLV was in second place. However, when finals rolled around, UNLV jumped up three points and took home the championship, leaving LSU and their fan-favorite routine in second place.
Immediately after awards were complete, hundreds of fans flooded to TikTok with their opinions on final placements and scores. Some go so far as to zoom in on dancers making mistakes and posting the videos, trying to highlight how they think these teams should not have done as well as they did.
“It disappoints me how the media has created such a negative environment between different universities,” said Wang.
We are all accustomed to how the “TikTokification” of things creates toxic environments, and UDA is no exception. With all the new eyes of people unfamiliar with how the sport truly works and have never even attended the event, the vibe has changed from before things went so viral.
Overall, 2026 UDA nationals had iconic dances, surprising upsets and many other trials and triumphs that have come with the never before seen virality of the event mixing with the years long traditions and issues that the event has.
