Hornell grad reaches NFL as cheerleader

By Andrew Poole
The Spectator
3/6/11

For at least one Hornell native, the 2010-2011 Buffalo Bills season was a success, even as the team floundered yet again.

Hornell high graduate “Jill” spent this past season as a cheerleader for the Bills, and will try out once again this spring for the upcoming season.
(Editor’s note: Cheerleaders aren’t allowed to provide their last names for interviews. The newspaper agreed not to use her name)

Jill, a 2006 Hornell grad, started cheering at a young age when a coach saw her tumbling after a soccer game.

“I never had an interest in it when I was younger. She saw me tumbling after a soccer game, and she said she wanted me to try. She trained me from scratch,” said Jill.

Jill cheered for basketball from 8th grade through graduation, and cheered for the Rochester Rhinos while an undergrad at Nazareth.

As graduation approached in March 2010, she took the plunge and tried out for the Bills.

“Once I graduated, I decided I had more time while going to grad school, and I wanted to go further with it. My coaches in high school always encouraged me to go further,” she said.

The tryouts, usually a month long, are a rigorous series of dance performances. This year will feature a new twist, as candidates must pass a swimsuit modeling round in preparation for the cheerleaders’ calendar.

While dancing and modeling are integral to the tryouts, cheerleaders are also quizzed on their Bills knowledge. Growing up in football-rich Hornell came in handy, she said.

“You need to be able to talk to fans and know what you’re talking about,” she said. “It’s mostly current information, but you need to know the Bills went to four super bowls, and who Jim Kelly is.

“You need to be able to say who you think the team needs to draft. Last year, we drafted a noseguard, and I had to know they wanted to revamp their defense.”

The commitment extends beyond game performances and memorizing team history. Cheerleaders perform throughout the year, whether for medical benefits or team calendars. Most of all, though, cheerleaders go overseas to meet and support the American military.

“I just got back from the Middle East a couple weeks ago. We visited Saudi Arabia and Kuwait,” she said. “Not many people get to go to a troop base and the countries we were. We performed, but we got to be a part of their everyday life as well.”

These off-season commitments will likely continue, said Jill, regardless of whether the labor lockout looming over the league cancels next season.

“I’m sure there will be plenty of appearances where we’re called on. Charities don’t stop because football doesn’t exist,” she said.

One full season in the NFL hasn’t satisfied Jill’s thirst for cheerleading. She’s planning on trying out again this April, and is thinking that a five-year career on the team sounds good.

“I do miss some things about competitive cheerleading. We don’t do as many stunts, and I don’t get to tumble as much,” she said. “But you can’t ask for better than a professional choreographer teaching you and an NFL field to perform on.”