ZANIEST CHEERLEADERS

October 07, 2002

[St. John's (Minn.)]They do wacky tumbling stunts and goofy dances, throw sausages into the stands and sometimes don women's clothing. The handful of students known as the Rat Pack lead the cheers at their all-male, sports-mad Division III school in the pine woods of central Minnesota. The appreciative home crowds often include scores of Benedictine monks from a monastery on campus. The Rat Pack, which began in the 1950s and got its name by pestering opponents, is already looking forward to having a national audience next fall. That's when Johnnies football coach John Gagliardi is expected to break Eddie Robinson's record for most college victories (408).