Here’s your first look at the 2014-15 Carolina Panthers Cheerleaders, the TopCats. Congrats ladies!

The cheerleaders website has an interesting article from last weekend’s open call and semi final rounds, and a photo gallery from prelims. Definitely worth checking out.

Voting is well underway to determine which rookie candidate will get a bye into training camp. If you will indulge me in a moment of pure self interest, I’d like to take a moment to lobby for my friend. Anncell is smart, sassy, funny, and a damn hard worker. If you take a moment to watch her video, you will also see that she’s is a mighty entertaining performer, fun to watch, and one of the best out of the 50-something candidates. (Obviously I’m biased. Doesn’t mean I’m wrong.)

I’m not telling you how to live your life, but you get ten votes. Howsabout using one of those for Anncell? Click here and VOTE FOR ANNCELL VOTE FOR ANNCELL VOTE FOR ANNCELL!

And that’s all I have to say about that.

Well, that, and also I’m pretty sure Oprah voted for Anncell.

We now return you to our regularly scheduled programming, where we ponder the question “Why is no one sitting in the front row?” And are those cue cards?

Click here for individual photos of the members of this year’s squad. Congratulations ladies!

The dancer with the most votes automatically goes to DCC training camp. Click here to cast your vote! (The site has been hit or miss, so if you can’t get through, try again later.)

Update: New link for voting. Click here

Updated (again): Use this link to vote!

Click here to watch the finalist videos! (Oh my goodness, does this link happen to go right to my friend Anncell’s video? Why yes it does! I have no idea how that happened.)

Sidebar: This has got to be crazy-making for finalist Michelle P. who just went through Sea Gal finals with this same exact song like two minutes ago. I bet she’s having flashbacks. I don’t know about her, but after watching 3 hours of Sea Gal auditions, I had hoped to never hear this song again. EVER.

“You know that I’ve been waitin’ for yoouuuuuu. Don’t leave me standin’ all by myseelllllllf.” God help me. How do the judges DO this?

Click here for the gallery on DallasNews.com!

There are a couple of familiar faces here.

Anncell (in green) danced for the San Antonio Spurs, the Los Angeles Lakers, and (the soon-to-be defunct) Chivas USA. (Full disclosure: she’s a personal friend. Congrats on making finals – woo hoo!)

Jovann (in nude/beige) danced for the Oakland Raiders, San Francisco 49ers, Texas Legends, Texas Revolution, and San Francisco Demons (remember the XFL?). In fact, now that I think about it, she might be eligible for our “Decade of Dance” club.

Jacksonville Jaguars cheerleaders and players take over Westfield for special day to the delight of British NFL fans
By Sunni Upal
The Daily Mail
May 10, 2014

The Jacksonville Jaguars surprised Stratford shoppers on Saturday as they took over Westfield for a 12-hour event. Cheerleaders performed and players, including John Cyprien and Denard Robinson signed autographs for NFL fans at the shopping centre in east London. There was also an exclusive screening of Kevin Costner’s new film Draft Day, which is not scheduled to be released in the UK. The event took place with the 2014 NFL draft ongoing in New York. Jacksonville selected quarterback Blake Bortles with the No 3 overall pick on Thursday. The Jags are back at Wembley this season to take on the Dallas Cowboys as one of three International Series games in London. Jacksonville agreed to play one home game at Wembley for four seasons, the first of those being a loss to San Francisco last year.

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Daily American
May 10, 2014

CROSBY, Texas (AP) — Mike Ramirez is a high school football player who spent most of his time on the bench last season and works part-time at a local McDonalds. Caitlyn is a Texans cheerleader whose life is devoted to intense workouts, coaching tumbling classes and studying communications at the University of Houston.

Yet 10,000 retweets later, the two are a prom couple.

For “Big Mike,” as he’s been known to his friends since his sophomore year at Crosby High School in suburban Houston, it all started as a joke during 3rd period, when Caitlyn followed him on a “Twitter following spree.”

“I was all like, ‘What if I took a Texans cheerleader to prom?'” Ramirez recalled asking his classmate. “He was like, that would be pretty cool.”

So Ramirez sent Caitlyn a message. “If I get 10,000 retweets will you go to prom with me (insert smiley face.) you will get asked in a cute way!”

“Of course I will,” responded Caitlyn, who according to Texans’ policy isn’t allowed to give her last name.

“Alrighttt!” Ramirez exclaimed.

Twenty-seven hours later, the high school senior who had recently broken up with his girlfriend had a date — as well as a lot a series of semi-envious, semi-genuine “attaboy” tweets from friends and dozens of new Twitter followers.

“It was just as a joke,” Ramirez said. “I didn’t think I was going to actually get it.”

And he really didn’t think it would attract attention beyond Crosby, a town of 2,300 people on the outskirts of Houston.

That one Twitter message, though, made Ramirez’s prom a bit more than he originally had in mind. Not only are there TV cameras and microphones eager to talk to him about the whole thing, his date was a bit of mystery.

The Texans decided the prom would be a blind date. All Ramirez knew about Caitlyn before they met was that her favorite color is pink and she likes sushi.

The two met Saturday night at Churrascos, an upscale Latin American restaurant, for dinner before prom.

Ramirez arrived first, with his mom, Monica Cortez, and eight friends of his friends.

Then Caitlyn arrived in a limousine, and six other Texans cheerleaders in uniform were at the restaurant to support her.

Ramirez opened the limo door for her, and she stepped out and gave him a hug. They exchanged a corsage and boutonniere.

Journalists were surrounding the limo when it arrived. When asked if there would be a second date, Michael indicated that he was hopeful for one — or even a wedding, he said jokingly.

As for Caitlyn, she said, “I plead the fifth.”

They were headed to prom at the Houston Museum of Natural Science after dinner.

From March until Saturday, the two had tried to go about their lives as normally as possible.

Ramirez worked his shifts at McDonald’s, juggling interview requests in between. He hung out at the park with his friends. He tried on tuxedos with his mother, and played with his younger sisters.

Caitlyn continued her university class schedule, while intensifying workouts and hip-hop dance classes ahead of cheerleader tryouts in April. Officially on the team for a second year, she adjusted her schedule to continue teaching tumbling classes while going to practice — and doing media interviews.

Ramirez’s mother, meanwhile, tried to get a handle on it all. Cortez opened a Twitter account for the first time to help her son with retweets. Quickly, though, she became more adept. She congratulated the couple, and thanked Caitlyn in 140 characters.

Then she started taking screenshots of Ramirez’s Twitter page as the interview requests piled up, telling him who to call and when.

“It’s a little overwhelming,” she said, wearing a red Project Graduation T-shirt while volunteering at a school fundraiser.

Yet she’s excited. Tears well up in her eyes. Her baby, she points out, is graduating.

“In the very beginning to me it was just one of his pranks because that’s just who Mike is. He likes to play around and joke around a lot, but I figured if he set his mind to it, it would work out,” Cortez said.

A couple of weeks ago, I posted a request for help with identifying dancers who have other family members who have also danced or cheered professionally. I was convinced it was happening a lot more often than we knew. And the dance team from Philadelphia 76ers proved me right. Rebecca Timms from the Sixers organization came through for me in a way I never imagined. She gave me sisters, she gave me cousins, and she gave me a mother/daughter duo. Complete with funny hat. And one of them is the coach! This, my friends, is what we call a HOME RUN. In scrabble, this would be a quadruple word score.

First up, we have cousins Erica and Nicole, both team captains during their time on the squad.

Erica joined the team in 2006 and danced with them through 2012. She was a captain during her last two years on the team. Nicole joined the team during Erica’s last year. She is currently in her third year on the squad, and her first year as a captain.

Next we have sisters Danielle and Valerie.

Danielle became a Sixers Dancer in 2007 and retired after the 2012-13 season. She was a captain during her last two years on the team. Valerie joined the team in 2011, when the name changed from the Sixers Dancers to the Dream Team, and she is currently in her third season on the team.

And finally, we have mother and daughter Dayna and Cheryl

Cheryl was on the team back when they were called the Liberty Belles. I’m not sure what year this photo came from, but the hair is telling me late 60s/early 70s. Dayna danced for seven seasons before retiring in 2006 as Assistant Captain. Three years later, she was hired as head coach of the Sixers Dancers, and is in her sixth year in that role.

There is clearly a lot of family love going on here, so if you have a sister (or a cousin) and the both of you can dance your tails off, get thee to Philadelphia. I’m not kidding. The Sixers Dream Team auditions are next month, with a pre-audition workshop scheduled for June 7th. (Click here for audition details.)

The squad was chosen a month ago, and by now I bet the ladies have all bonded like they’ve known each other forever. Here are a few of my favorite shots from finals. Click here to view the rest of the gallery!

Yay! Alex made the team! I’ve known Alex since she was on the Clippers Spirit dance team back in 2007. Werq!

Angela G is a rookie on the team this year. I was shocked to see her at Chargers, since just a few months prior, she’d been selected to the new LA KISS Girls dance team. Unfortunately, Angela had to drop off of the team when they changed their rehearsal schedule to weekday mornings. It’s great to see that she’ll be able to keep dancing.

This year’s Pro Bowl Cheerleader Anjelica is back for season #4!

I met Bridget (in yellow) and Brittney (above) at prelims and liked them both very much. I was super jazzed that they both made the team. Brittney is an alum of the (now defunct) Dallas Vigilantes dance team.

Delani is also a rookie Charger Girl this year.

Diana wasn’t chosen for the team, but her abs are SICK.

Denise, another rookie. Two words: Shoe In.

Rookies Devin and Whitney

Rookie Jayme

Tinaiya (in black and white) and Lindsay (above) are back for their first year as veterans. With kicks like that, nobody is shocked they both made it back.

Natalie made it back for her 6th year on the team. Woot!