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Texas Connects Us: The Final Four of Chess

Usually we associate pep rallies with large sports teams.

But if your university doesn't have football, and your chess team is consistently ranked among the best in the country, why not shower them with campus-wide support?

"I've never really cheered for chess before, so it should be interesting," joked University of Texas at Dallas cheerleader Chloe McFarland. "Chess is probably our biggest sport, I guess you could say."

The chess team at UTD is off to New York and the Final Four of collegiate chess.

The team is ranked third in the country and on Wednesday, the school held a pep rally to send them off.

"It gives a huge boost," said team captain David Berczes.

Berczes, a Grand Mater in chess, grew up in Hungry.

"Before I came here, I had seen it in movies," he said about pep rallies. "I didn't know it was even for chess teams, so it's a big deal and I'm excited."

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