Ottawa Citizen

THRILL OF THE GAME

NFL cheers hit Ottawa

- CHRIS LACKNER

Right in the middle of Redblacks fever, there were chants of give us a T for Texas and T for Tennessee Wednesday night. That’s because the Tennessee Titans cheerleade­rs were in town for a special NFL Canada Thursday Night Football event at Patty Boland’s on Clarence Street.

The festivitie­s were part of an eight-city, cross-country tour that has featured special guests such as retired NFL stars Bruce Smith, Jerome Bettis and Shaun Alexander; as well as members of other cheerleadi­ng squads. Ottawa’s event certainly had a Super Bowl-esque atmosphere, with four Titans’ cheerleade­rs in attendance for the televised game between their team and the Jacksonvil­le Jaguars.

All four however want to clear up one big misconcept­ion: cheerleadi­ng isn’t their full-time job, says Julia, a holistic health coach and seven-year Titan cheermonge­r. Most members of the squad have full-time careers or are enrolled as students, from personal trainer (Anne) to executive assistant (Heather) to veterinary school student (Evony). “We’re (on that field) because we have a passion for cheerleadi­ng, dancing and the game of football,” Julia explains. Their last names are withheld for security reasons, they say.

The hardest thing about the job? The multi-tasking and improvisat­ion required. During games, their squad is split into four groups; while they have set music and moves for kickoff and touchdowns, the rest of the game is as random as a football coach’s play calling. Each group’s captain has to make quick decisions on what routines to perform depending on which songs are blared over the stadium’s loudspeake­r.

“That can mean everything from rap to Johnny Cash,” four-year veteran Heather explains. How do you cheerlead to the Man in Black one might ask? “It’s not easy,” she says with a laugh.

But cheerleadi­ng comes as second nature for most of them. Anne, for example, has been dancing in some form or other since she was five years old. She took a hiatus from cheerleadi­ng while attending Belmont University in Nashville, but was drawn back to try out for the NFL squad. Tennessee-native, Evony, has danced and cheered since Grade 5, and was a collegiate cheerleade­r at Tennessee State University. But then there are rare cases like Julia who was never a cheerleade­r before trying out for the squad; she didn’t make the team in middle school and now she performs in front of 70,000 frenzied fans.

Julia says being on the sidelines is the ultimate thrill. Cheerleade­rs are big football fans; it comes with the territory. Most of the squad is from the American South, so they have attended football games since they could practicall­y crawl. “We can see and hear the impact of the hits, see the players’ faces and feel the energy,” Julia says. “You can also hear the interactio­n of players and coaches. You see them get frustrated, you see them celebrate.”

While united by pompom colour, the women’s game-day rituals differ. The squad typically assembles four hours before a home game for hair, makeup and practice. Anne likes to ride a bike or do yoga beforehand. Heather’s recipe is 24-hours of hydrating, a good night’s sleep and stretching.

“There is a lot of preparatio­n that goes into every game,” Anne explains. It also takes a lot of effort to keep in shape for their eightgame home seasons, and myriad of community and charity events. Heather, for example, stays in form through a combo of kick-boxing, running and treadmill.

While they share a love for football and dance, one of the unexpected perks of job is travelling around the state and city of Nashville, and meeting people at community and charity events, Julia explains. Ottawa fans were greeted with a special routine designed specifical­ly for the foursome at the event: it featured two 75-second excerpts from show-stopping numbers they perform with their full team. The mini-squad mingled for photo-ops and autograph and calendar signings. Fans also had the chance to win multiple prizes, including a trip for two to Super Bowl in San Francisco.

This trip to Canada was an added perk. “We know how much the game has grown in Canada and how devoted NFL fans here, are, too,” Anne says. “These NFL Canada events are important to connect with them.

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 ?? JULIE OLIVER/OTTAWA CITIZEN ?? The patrons at Patty Boland’s pub in the Byward Market got a bonus Thursday evening when some Tennessee Titans cheerleade­rs stopped by. Four of the cheerleade­rs (including, from left: Julia, Evony, Anne and Heather) were in town for part of the NFL...
JULIE OLIVER/OTTAWA CITIZEN The patrons at Patty Boland’s pub in the Byward Market got a bonus Thursday evening when some Tennessee Titans cheerleade­rs stopped by. Four of the cheerleade­rs (including, from left: Julia, Evony, Anne and Heather) were in town for part of the NFL...

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