Valley Native Rowan in Super Bowl Spotlight

By Ted Sillanpaa,
Napa Valley Register

Don’t try to tell Napa native Jackie Rowan that the cheerleaders will be a mere distraction during Super Bowl XLIV today in Miami.

“Cheerleaders play an important role in the atmosphere surrounding the game and the franchise,” said Rowan, who will be on the sidelines today as a member of the New Orleans Saints cheerleading squad. “To refer to us as sideline ‘eye candy’ fails to account for the countless hours we spend at appearances for charity and as volunteers in the communities.”

Rowan, who has been in Miami through the week leading up to the showdown between the NFC champion Saints and the AFC champion Indianapolis Colts, actually believes she and her peers are part of the much larger team.

“We cheer and hope alongside Saints fans,” Rowan, 24, said. “We are a constant reminder of the special bond between New Orleans and the Saints.”

Today’s kickoff might be a bit of a breather for Rowan and her cheer teammates after a hectic week.

“Our schedule is crazy! I’ve never been to Miami before, but the city has just been buzzing with excitement,” she said. “There isn’t a place I go without overhearing someone talk about the Super Bowl.”

Rowan spent hours involved in Super Bowl media appearances and other events.

“Some of us did a swim suit show and after that it was press, press and more press,” she said. “We practiced in the hotel ball room until Friday and then practiced in the stadium.”

She’s excited about the opportunity to be part of the biggest game of the National Football League season.

“Each cheer team performs a pregame dance, and then of course we’ll be on the sidelines dancing the whole game,” Rowan said. “It’s amazing to think that I’m going to have the best seat at the Super Bowl … on the field right on the 50-yard line.”

Napa High grad Jackie Rowan, shown signing autographs as a 49ers Cheerleader Ambassador, has spent the season on the cheer squad for the NFC champion New Orleans Saints.

Rowan, who danced at Napa High School for four years before graduating in 2003, began as part of the San Francisco 49ers cheerleaders.

“I was working in San Francisco and thought the opportunity would be exciting and challenging,” Rowan said. “I wanted to apply my passion for dance to a professional yet heart-pounding environment. I tried out and was thrilled to be placed on the 49ers Gold Rush Ambassador Squad.”

Rowan moved to New Orleans to attend Tulane University, where she studies anthropology.

“More specifically, I’m studying primatology,” she said. “I decided to pursue job opportunities after high school. I do envision graduate school in my near future.”

Rowan went through the challenging process of trying to earn a spot on the Saints cheerleading squad after arriving in Louisiana.

“We went through a series of intense auditions, evaluating our dance abilities, physical fitness, and personalities,” she said. “The panel looked for energy, confidence, enthusiasm, and the willingness to work towards a common goal. I made it through the rounds of selections and, before I knew it, I was at the new team orientation retreat on the beaches of Destin, Fla.”

Between school, a job and cheerleading, Rowan has been busy.

“I must balance school, internship, and cheerleading in what often seems like an impossible schedule,” she said. “Most days I’m running out of class to head to the practice facility or squeezing in a late workout after a long day at my primate internship. This has certainly been a wild ride, but provided important lessons in time management.

“Cheerleading dominates Tuesday, Thursday and often Saturday nights in addition to Sunday afternoon or evening home games. We put in extra practice time for prime-time games on Sunday and Monday nights and for the playoffs.”

Rowan is a football fan, but acknowledges that devotion to the sport is different in her new hometown.

“I have always enjoyed the game of football, but the experience is incredibly different in Louisiana,” she said. “From the ear-piercing screams from fans in the Superdome to massive block parties before and after games, I have grown to love the excitement and hype surrounding football.”

Still, she admits that her love for dancing drew her to the Saints.

“The opportunity to dance and cheer under the spotlight was at the core of my interests,” Rowan said.

Saints cheerleaders are especially busy on game day.

“We generally arrive at the stadium up to six hours prior to game time,” she said. “We have some time at our lockers to do some essential touch-ups before dealing with press appearances, etc. We will go through some progressions of player introductions, quarter-break dances, and halftime entertainment.”

It’s harder than some might believe to keep pace as an NFL cheerleader.

“We’re constantly and rapidly learning new dances with different alignments and positions,” Rowan mentioned. “We have to have flexible memories to master dances for stadium and television audience in just a few days.”

Her year with the Saints cheerleaders has been rewarding.

“I have so many friendships that I developed with my fellow teammates,” she said. “These amazing girls gather from all corners of the state of Louisiana, and come together to form a family. We have all grown so close over the course of this remarkable season, and have made memories that will last a lifetime.”

Rowan knows her time at Tulane will lead to her ultimate career goal.

“I would like to continue to work with animals, and specifically primates, in a research capacity,” she said. “I want to explore the intersection of primate behavior and environmental change, and address issues relating to captivity habitat management.”