Saturday night on The Moshulu at the Penn’s Landing, five decades of Eagles Cheerleaders reunited to celebrate the past and to kickoff the start of the NFL Alumni Philadelphia Cheerleaders organization.
Alumni Media Relations Director Monica Devlin (left) with former teammate Allison. Monica promised me I’d see a lot of familiar faces and she wasn’t wrong.
Kate Osman (left) and Theresa Vitelli. Theresa was the cover girl for the 2004 Eagles Cheerleaders Swimsuit Calendar. You may remember Kate as the right fielder for the LaSalle University Softball Team. The very charming Kate is now a travel agent and part-time model.
Erin Stetser Goga was from the next town over from where I grew up, and it was quite a thrill to meet her. Here she holds up her calendar photo. (I had that calendar once)
Another alum I was thrilled to meet: Nicole Garis McCarthy. Nicole was featured prominently in the Eagles Cheerleaders segment in the 1992 Polygram Video Pro Football’s Hottest Cheerleaders. She was also Miss Delaware USA in 1995.
But there was more to the night than seeing old friends and making new ones. There was a silent auction held with the goal of raising $10,000 for youth charities.
Sharon Sweeney (left) and Marylou Tammaro received Achievement Awards. Sharon was the last coach of the Eaglettes in 1977 and the first director of the Liberty Belles in 1978. Marylou was a Cheerleader, Choreographer and Director in a career that spanned more than 20 years.
Quarterback Joe Pisarcik, was with the Eagles the year they went to Super Bowl XV. He’s now President of the Philadelphia Chapter of the NFL Players Alumni, and he spoke to the audience to about the important work that the Players and Cheerleaders Alumni organizations do.
Plus, over forty years worth of memorabilia, from uniforms to old news stories were on display.
[Eagles Cheerleaders Alumni Photos]
Back at the end of August the Washington Wizard Girls jetted down to the Caribbean to shoot their 2009-10 Swimsuit Calendar. Their destination was the Nail Bay Resort on the island of Virgin Gorda. In addition to shooting on Virgin Gorda, the dancers also visited the islands of Tortola, Jost Van Dyke, Peter and Anegada. Not 100% sure, but I think this is the first time an NBA Dance Team has gone outside the country to shoot their calendar.
Assistant Director Brianne Ritzert sent us a few photos from the trip. Most of the shots are just fun and action shots from their adventures around the islands, but there are a few sneak peaks of the girls being prepped during their actual calendar shoots.
Fans can get their first look at the new calendar on November 6th when the Wizard Dancers hold their calendar release party.
Showing off the new 2009-2010 uniform at “The Baths” of Virgin Gorda
Alexandria
Clowning around
Marina
By Steve Mazzucchi
Esquire
Coming off a heartbreaker in Week One and down 10-3 early to the Arizona Cardinals yesterday, Jacksonville was driving for a game-tying score when Cards safety Adrian Wilson — already sitting on a $10,000 fine for a hit the previous Sunday — threw Torry Holt a bump. No flag came, and plenty of booing ensued. So did the Jags settling for a field-goal try, which was promptly batted out of the air and returned 83 yards for an Arizona TD. It was more heartbreak from there, as the Cardinals stomped their way to a 31-17 win.
Kelli, a third-year member of Jacksonville’s ROAR and a future schoolteacher, gave us the postgame breakdown on following that highlight-reel runback from the losing end, her team’s new 33-year-old wideout (“Torry Holt’s still got some magic left — he’s younger than T.O.”), and how her squad is more about hot-stepping than college-style cheering (“We don’t make a big tower on the sideline — that might be hard in boots”).
ESQUIRE: So just how big of a turning point was that non-call on Adrian Wilson?
KELLI: Very big. We could have done extremely well if the ref had called pass interference. The fans were going insane. It really put a damper on the game, and I’m sure our guys are not too happy about it. Maybe the ref sees something we don’t see. I feel like if he’s watching, he should have called that penalty there. But you never know.
ESQ: The Jags then went down 24-3, the largest halftime deficit at home in team history. Is it hard to keep cheering when things don’t seem to be working out on the field?
KS: It’s definitely more exciting when we’re winning, but we have to cheer harder and louder to get everyone excited when we’re losing, because you want to get that energy going. We do different dances every weekend, but the dance routines and cheers that our captains call out are pretty set — there aren’t any changes at the line of scrimmage.
ESQ: In these difficult economic times, the NFL continues to black out local coverage of games that don’t sell out — like this one. Do you think that actually motivates fans to come out for games?
KS: Unfortunately, it has been rough for us to fill our seats. Today’s economy has put a strain on people’s wallets, and it doesn’t help that it’s always really hot here until December. It was in the 90s today, and we were sweating really bad. I guess a blackout works, because if people really want to see the game, they’re going to have to come, but I always enjoy being on TV so people can see us. The organization has different ticket packages to encourage people to come to games. But to really get the fans out, we just need to win.
ESQ: What would you say was the team’s biggest difficulty against Arizona?
KS: That non-call was definitely a difficulty. The block going back for a touchdown was a difficulty. And there were a few passes that weren’t caught.
ESQ: Like rookie receiver Nate Hughes dropping two potential TD catches in a row. Do you think the kid will bounce back?
KS: Oh, yeah. I think the whole team can bounce back from the negative things that happened today. I was crossing my fingers behind my pom-poms when we had the ball, down 31-to-17 with five minutes left, praying for a turnaround. It didn’t happen this game, but hopefully it will next week against Houston.
ESQ: But the Texans had a big upset win this week, too. In which area do the Jags most need to improve to get that first victory?
KS: I think our offense and our defense need to step it up. All they can do is get better. You can only go up from 0-and-2.
ESQ: You’re a cheerleader. Give us some reasons to be excited about the rest of the Jaguars’ season.
KS: It’s only been two games, and we played fairly well against a team that was 12-4 last season and one that just went to the Super Bowl. We’ve got Maurice Jones-Drew — the fantasy owners out there should definitely pick him up — plus Torry Holt and a clutch kicker in Josh Scobee, who has saved us a lot. I think we’ll do great the next game. And the next game. I think we’ll go far.
ESQ: Speaking of going places, you’re also getting a degree in elementary ed. What else do you do when you’re not learning how to mold young minds?
KS: I really enjoy doing charity events with the ROAR. We do Dreams Come True, which is like Make-A-Wish, and visit kids in the hospital. We give out presents, have pizza with them, hang out, and take pictures. It’s very rewarding, and don’t worry — we wear black dance pants and our uniform top with a zipped-up jacket. No booty shorts like on gameday.
See some of the MDC Calendar photos at Maxim this week.
[Dolphins Cheerleaders at Maxim]
[Dolphins Cheerleaders Calendar]
I think I might have done this poll last year.
The “New” New England Patriots Cheerleaders uniform
The “Classic” New England Patriots Cheerleaders uniform
The “Throwback” New England Patriots Cheerleaders uniform
Previous results:
[Smokin’ Hot Steam Team Auditions]
I’m off to climb a mountain. (actually three mountains) If all goes according to plan, I’ll be back on Monday, if not well….
I’ve scheduled some posts to appear over the next few days under my name, so don’t be confused, I really am away.
In the meantime if you’ve got tips, news or photos to share. Send them to Sasha (sasha@procheerleaderblog.com)
(Finally, all caught up)
Back on September 3rd, I traveled up to Buffalo’s Ralph Wilson Stadium where the Bills hosted the Lions for the last pre-season game of the season. Buffalo Jills Director Stephanie Mateczun had secured for me a sideline credential so I could photograph her squad.
Omarlla, is a ten year veteran, a line captain and the Jills 2004 Pro Bowl Representative.
Angelina was the “Jill of the Day” and delivered the football to midfield prior to the start of the game.
Eileen is another ten-year veteran and a line captain. She represented the Jills at the 2006 Pro Bowl.
This is Phil the proprietor of the Buffalo Pro Cheer Blog. Phil is also a huge fan arriving hours before the parking lot gates even open (1:30 for a 6:30 kickoff).
Nicole (Jills Coordinator) and Stephanie (Director of the Jills) A big thanks to Stephanie, The Jills, The Bills Organization (and Phil for the spicy sausage)!
