Andy Zieminski, The Examiner
2007-03-05 08:00:00.0
Current rank: Not ranked

BALTIMORE -

The Baltimore Ravens held open tryouts over the weekend for what the team says is the NFL’s only co-ed cheerleader squad.

“It adds a very different dynamic to the NFL,” said stunt coach Will Stokes. “We provide a completely different performance to what you’d see at any other stadium.”

Cheerleader coaches were looking to fill their all-women dance team as well as their co-ed stunt team, which performs acrobatic maneuvers often associated with competitive cheerleading.

Nine men joined about 200 women Saturday for the tryouts at Merritt’s Downtown Athletic Club in Baltimore City. Judges invited 35 dancers and 19 stunt performers back for a second round of tryouts Sunday with the team’s veterans, who also have to compete for positions.

Judges look for charismatic, athletic men and women who can perform a range of throwing stunts and tumbles, Stokes said.

Many of the men participating in Sunday’s tryout had good experience, said Dan W., a new participant. Most of them were cheerleaders in college and grew up playing sports. A big part of their job description includes lobbing their female counterparts high into the air and catching them. Dan W., 24, cheered for three years at University of Notre Dame and played lacrosse in high school.

“Basically, this is the only opportunity you have to do this out of school that I know of,” he said.

The Ravens organization discourages cheerleaders, both men and women, from using their last names to protect them from potentially obsessive fans, some of the veterans said.

Many of the men said the opportunity is a golden one.

“On third and one, I have a better view of the game than some refs,” said Shea H., a two-year veteran. “It’s definitely a once-in-a-lifetime thing.”

Ravens cheerleaders are paid $100 a game, a group of veterans said during tryouts.

“I would do this for free,” said Henry M., a four-year veteran of the Ravens’ cheerleader squad. “No one does it for the money.” Henry M., an Anne Arundel police officer, said his friends love the idea of what he does. “All my friends are cops and cheerleaders.”

The team meets for three- or four-hour training sessions once a week during the off-season and twice a week during the season. They cheer at home games and attend charity events.

After performing dance routines and stunts in front of judges, finalists will sit through interviews in the coming weeks, said Megan Collins, a special events coordinator for the Ravens.

The stunt team takes between 16 and 18 men and between 14 and 16 women each year, Stokes said.

azieminski@baltimoreexaminer.com