Ohio import Allie’s football fantasy includes a super view of the goal line with the Colts Cheerleaders

The border that divides Indiana and Ohio splits the Midwest into two sporting jurisdictions. On the Indiana side, life revolves around hoops: Larry Bird, Gene Hackman in Hoosiers, Bobby Knight, Oscar Robertson, Bobby Plump’s last shot, John Wooden; basketball icons, all. On the Ohio side, the gridiron rules, with Woody Hayes, Paul Brown, “Go Bucks!,” pro football’s birthplace in Canton, “Hang on Snoopy,” Archie Griffin’s two Heismans. Football is much more than a sport throughout Ohio, from Cleveland to Cincy, and all points in-state.

So it makes sense that Ohio born and raised Colts Cheerleader Allie brings a lot more than her wealth of dance talents to the sidelines. A LOT more! Allie brings a deep-seeded love of football to her spot on the goal line at Lucas Oil Stadium. In fact, if you are sitting in the back rows when the Colts Cheerleaders are throwing souvenirs to fans, you might to give a yell to Allie to “go deep,” as she can throw a spiral with the best of them. Allie shared with UltimateCheerleaders her love of football, her award winning history of cheer/dance, her chance to sing at events surrounding the biggest of big games, and, as a post-college newcomer to Indianapolis herself, where she would take Andrew Luck on her ultimate “Get to Know Indy Tour.”

Though Allie is a dedicated native Ohioan, some of her favorite memories whilst growing up involve seeing the rest of the country, and the world. “I was born and raised in Centerville, Ohio, which is located about fifteen minutes south of Dayton; I lived in the same house for nineteen years until I moved to Columbus to attend The Ohio State University,” Allie, who has a younger brother and two older half-sisters, shares. “Traveling was always a priority for my parents and those trips are among my favorite memories! I’m lucky to have traveled all over the United States and have even visited Hawaii and Australia!”

Sure, you can take Allie out of Ohio, but you cannot take the Ohio football fanatic out of the girl. When asked her favorite things, of course, Allie has to mention some pigskin. “I love to sing, dance, workout, boat, fish, eat, and watch football,” Allie says. “I’m also partial to cats; not that fond of dogs.”

But pet lovers of all kinds create football mania throughout Ohio, centered in the capital with OSU. “The NFL currently has three players from my hometown of Centerville and two of them played for Ohio State!” Allie exclaims. “Kirk Herbstreit, college game day commentator, also hails from Centerville! We’re proud of our home-town boys! My parents love football, both college and NFL. They fly the Ohio State flag on Saturday’s, and the Colts flag on Sunday’s, and they are season ticket holders!”

But Allie took her parents love of football, summed it together, plus magnified it to a whole new level, and now is sharing her fanaticism with her Colts Cheer teammates. “My dad is pretty good in his football pool (currently second) but I’d have to say I am THE football fanatic!” Allie explains. “I love to play football and can throw a pretty spiral about 35 yards. For me, one of the greatest highlights of being a Colts Cheerleader is the front row view of every snap. SportsCenter is an everyday priority of mine and the NFL fantasy football app eats up my iPhone battery on a daily basis. This year, I initiated a fantasy league within the Colts Cheerleading squad which has become quite competitive! My team, Weggie Rayne, yes, Weggie Rayne, is currently pulling a winning record and with any luck I’ll have a winning season.”

Did you say “Luck”; we will get to the new Colts QB in a second. But first, how did Allie’s NFL cheer journey begin? “I began cheering in fourth grade for our Pee Wee football team and it was ‘love at first toe-touch,’” Allie recalls. “I was a cheerleader all through middle and high school, and during my sophomore year auditioned at a local gymnastics club for its first-ever season of all-star cheerleading. I made the senior advanced team for the TOPS All-Stars and fell in love with competitive all-star cheerleading. After my junior year, I was recruited to cheer on the senior elite coed squad at Midwest Cheer Elite in Cincinnati, Ohio, which gave me the opportunity to be a part of one of the best programs in the Midwest. By the time I graduated high school, I held over a dozen cheerleading national championship titles, was voted ‘best dancer’ in my senior class, and had a passion that I just couldn’t walk away from. I became a coach, a choreographer and then ultimately an NFL cheerleader.”

But like most people with eyes on an NFL career, Allie needed to go to a good school with a good football program. And Allie attended the football mecca, the horseshoe, the place where a tuba player dotting a script “i” evokes a roar; The Ohio State University. Allie graduated with a degree in Psychology and Organizational Leadership, and described her college experience as, “College at OSU was a blast, especially on game days! Receiving my degree is one of my greatest personal accomplishments.”

By the end of college, Allie listened to her inner, football-loving, soul, and began the dream of being part of the NFL. “During my senior year at OSU, I auditioned to become an Indianapolis Colts Cheerleader,” Allie remembers. “This meant hundreds of hours practicing and commuting from Columbus to Indy for clinics and auditions. I missed the final cut that year, but set my sights on the following season’s auditions. I’ll never get over the thrill of hearing my name called as a member of the 2011-2012 Colts Cheerleading squad!”

So Allie’s NFL dream became reality, then she moved to a brand new city, in a brand new state. What did it add to be “new in town,” but at the same time be part of the sisterhood of the Colts Cheerleaders? “Moving to Indianapolis in March of 2011 left me quite nervous and a little homesick,” Allie says. “I only knew a couple girls from the audition clinics until I made the team. Becoming a member of the squad and having so many beautiful, smart, and talented girls to call my new best friends was the best blessing I could have received. After hours of practices, appearances, and locker room time, you can’t help but become extremely close to everyone. In my case, I have made best friends that will last a lifetime!”

And perhaps an experience of a lifetime was rookie ICC Allie being part of Indianapolis’ Super Bowl week festivities, when the Colts Cheerleaders performed all over Super Bowl Village, appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, and performed at numerous other events, such as the celebrity beach bowl. Asked about her memories of Indy’s Super Bowl week, and the really cool people she met, Allie replied, “Super Bowl week was beyond incredible! Being the host-city cheerleading squad meant two solid weeks of appearances at some pretty fantastic events! We performed several times in Super Bowl Village, and I even got to sing twice! Escorting Tony Dungy for an onstage speech was every bit as exciting as attending the ESPN Super Bowl Party which was loaded with celebrities from the sports world, the music industry, and Hollywood. Celebrities were all over town that week!”

Allie’s rookie season gave her LOTS of reasons for wanting a second season with the Colts Cheerleaders. “There’s no way to explain the thrill of it all!” Allie says. “There’s absolutely not one piece of this experience that I don’t love! The Colts organization, game day, my teammates and coach, the fans, the energy, the appearances, the opportunities, the dance, the music, the noise, the emotions, and the bling on my uniforms just to name a few!”

With all her enthusiasm, Allie seems like the perfect person to show another new prized prospect taking his first job out of college on a tour of his new city. So Allie, if you had to drive Andrew Luck around Indy to show him what he needs to know to learn to love and function in his new hometown, what essentials would you show him? Allie answers, “I would introduce Andrew Luck to the Monon Trail, the Carmel Arts District, Rick’s Boatyard, Colts Grill, Huddles frozen yogurt, the canal, the Indiana Repertory Theater, Fountain Square, and Indy Comedy Sportz the first day…”

Since the Colts new QB has a degree in architectural design, and Allie loves travel, if she won a trip to see some of the world’s most notable architectural designs, which one would Allie pick and why? “I took several years of French in high school and college and always thought I’d like to see Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower in Paris, but if I could only choose one, the Pyramids in Egypt offer the most intrigue since they are so old and no one really knows how they were built,” replies Allie. “I guess that’s why they are one of the Seven Wonders of the World!”

Well, it is no “wonder” that Allie is bright and talented with boundless enthusiasm and a great future. Asked about her current job and her dream job, Allie replies, “I’m currently an Office Manager for a mortgage lending company. It’s a great place to work and everyone is a Colts fan! My dream job, and I’m REALLY dreaming here, would be to take (Colts owner) Jim Irsay’s place when he retires! I hope he’s feeling generous!”

I bet Twitter-loving Jim Irsay would love to have Allie help him out, since prior to her current job, Allie worked in social media research. How long, Allie, could you be “off the grid” before becoming itchy to log in? Allie answers, “I’ll be the first one to admit that social media can be addicting. I spent a week ‘off the grid’ while serving as a camp counselor and honestly couldn’t wait to catch up when I got home!”

But, sometimes do social media result in a bit of TMI from people? “While everything I need or want to know is at my fingertips, so is everyone’s business and I have little patience with those who feel their every daily move needs to be documented,” Allie says. “However, I feel the ability to be ‘linked in’ offers incredible opportunities in the professional world.”

Prior to the Colts dramatic home win against Green Bay, football games, and wins/losses were all put into real perspective with the news that Colts Head Coach Chuck Pagano was diagnosed with leukemia and will undergo four to six months of treatment at a hospital in Indianapolis. “The week leading up to the Packers game was incredibly emotional with Coach Pagano’s diagnosis,” Allie says. “I believe that God is in the miracle business and know that my prayers for coach’s recovery join a million others. We knew beating the Packers would take every ounce of talent we had and the victory was indescribable! Our team and our fans gave all they had!”

The Colts Cheerleaders used social media to send out their best wishes to Coach Pagano during that time. See, the ICC are in the cheer business, both on the field and during community appearances that raise the spirits of those needing some cheer. “As a Colts Cheerleader, it is our job to give everything we have as well, to inspire others, to offer assistance wherever we can, and to serve up a smile for those needing some cheer,” explains Allie. But the Colts Cheerleaders receive their own touching moments along the way, as Allie recalls, “There have been many moments that have touched me: receiving a letter from a grateful father whose daughter was impacted by an appearance, helping a devastated community by cleaning up their tornado-ravaged town, signing autographs for physically and mentally challenged individuals, assisting with food drives. For me, it is the most rewarding part of representing the Colts and the NFL. It’s an honor and I am blessed to be part of this life-changing experience!”

And certainly the Colts Cheerleaders are blessed to have Allie’s energy, positivity, and love of all things football on their team. Just as she described her teammates, Allie graces the goal line area with her own beautiful, smart, and talented presence. In fact, if we see some Colts opponents dropping TD’s or fumbling near the goal line, I bet Allie’s ability to be a “sideline distraction” may be the cause. Especially if it helps her fantasy league results!

Thanks so much to Allie for taking the time to share her experiences with UltimateCheerleaders! More photos of Allie from the Colts-Cincy pre-season game are at this link. In addition, the Colts website has some cool recent pics of Allie at this link, and her swimsuit gallery is at this link.