When you mention the name Linda Gooch, many adjectives come to mind but at the forefront is hall of famer. A former four-year letter-winner as a UCF cheerleader and an alumna of UCF, Gooch was recently inducted into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame in October 2024 and was a 2022 inductee into the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame.
Now in her 41st season leading the Knights, Gooch has led the program to four Universal Cheerleaders Association (UCA) national championships with the most recent earlier this year in January. The Black and Gold won their first national title in 2003, then again in 2007, 2020 and 2024. UCF also won the gameday division national championship in 2019.
Gooch has led UCF to top-10 finishes in 26 of last 28 years, including fifth in 2022 and second in 2021. For seven consecutive years, she guided UCF teams to top-three finishes from 2015-21. Additionally, UCF has multiple top-five finishes at the national championships under her direction.
Nationally recognized among her peers, Gooch is one of the most decorated cheerleading coaches all-time. Since 1984, she has led the program from the early stages of its development to the perennial powerhouse that it now finds itself.
Gooch was inducted into the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022 and in 2023, the 2007 national champion cheer team was inducted into the hall of fame. The squad finished first in Division IA Cheer finals of the 2007 College Nationals Cheerleading and Dance Team Championship at Walt Disney Wide World of Sports, finishing ahead of Alabama (second), Kentucky (third), Tennessee (fourth) and LSU (fifth) in the final standings.
The longest-tenured employee in the UCF Athletics department, Gooch played a key role in the creation and design of UCF athletics mascot, Knightro. She also established UCF KnightMoves dance team in 1996.
Since Gooch’s squad began competing in the national championships in 1994, the UCF cheerleading squad has captured three national titles at the Universal Cheerleaders Assocation College Cheerleading National Championship in 2003, 2007 and 2020. The Knights finished in the top three in the country in seven straight seasons (2015-21) in the national championships and has earned a top-10 finish 27 times in the last 29 years, including fifth in 2022 and fourth in 2023.
In 2003, the team won its first national crown by ending the University of Kentucky's streak of eight-consecutive titles. In 2007, UCF claimed its second national championship by outlasting several SEC schools, including Kentucky. The team received overwhelming response from a national audience during the 2007-08 season when the UCF cheerleading program was featured in a six-part television documentary that followed the team as they prepared to defend their national title. The 2013-14 season had many highlights starting in April with UCF's 2003 championship team being inducted into the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame.
In 2020, the team won its third national title, snapping the streak of four-time defending champ Kentucky, while also placing ahead of Alabama and Ohio State.
Gooch in 2011 received the colonel Gene Moeller College National Coach of the Year Award and in 2015 led the UCF cheer team to a first-place finish at the European Open Championship in Paris, France. She established the KnightMoves dance team in 1996 and played a leading role in the creation, design and character development of Knightro.
In 2011 she received a special award at the National Cheer and Dance Championships for her "significant impact" on cheer - then in 2020 earned the Shining Knight Award from UCF Alumni in the distinguished alumni category.
She is married to former long time UCF Football assistant coach Alan Gooch (also an alumni). The couple has two sons Zach and Noah. Gooch graduated from UCF in 1985 with a degree in social science education.