Meet Taylor Arenz Former Pro Bowl/5X NFL Cheerleader and Sports Reporter
With Taylor, the sky is the limit! Learn about her life mantra and so much more.
In this edition of More Than Poms, we are exclusively featuring…
Taylor Arenz
Former Pro Bowl/5X NFL Cheerleader and Sports Reporter
1. Tell us about the life of Taylor! Your background, your dance journey, and how
it has gotten you to where you are today!
The life of Taylor is quite unconventional! I moved around a ton for my dad’s
job, but spent most of my years in Arizona, Pennsylvania and Texas. I was
always a dancer though, so it was easier for me to get adjusted because I
would find a dance studio and instantly become friends with all the girls.
I did competitive cheer and dance through 4th grade. Eventually it became too
much, and I had to pick and choose dance; however, I continued to keep
practicing tumbling weekly that I had learned as a cheerleader.
I worked extremely hard every day in both dance and school and eventually in
high school decided to switch to online school to allow me to travel and
pursue more opportunities with dance. But this was way before online
education was a thing so at the time many found this to be very shocking
unconventional decision. However, I was missing so much school for dance
and modeling. I modeled often for Weissman Dance Wear which is based in St.
Louis, and I was flying there almost every week.
After high school, I went on to college and received both my Bachelor’s and
Master’s while I was cheering professionally in the NFL. Being able to cheer
professionally while in college allowed more flexibility and I was able to
become very involved in the community doing appearances almost daily.
Including an USO Tour that we traveled overseas to perform for our military.
I’m so lucky for all those experiences I have had through dance and cheer
because they have shaped me into the woman. It has given me opportunities
that many people only dream about. Dance and cheer has also taught me so
many life skills that I will take into my career and with my work ethic and
determination I feel the sky is the limit!
2. What was your experience like cheering in the NFL? Was reaching the
professional level something you always dreamed of? What helped you initially
reach the goal and what helped you to continue reaching new heights once you
were at the most prestigious level?
I wish being an NFL cheerleader was a full-time job because I would have done it
forever! It was always a dream of mine to be an NFL cheerleader. For as long as I
can remember I already loved dance and sports, so it was the perfect combination
of my two loves.
Every day I trained in dance, it was in hopes to accomplish my dream of becoming
an NFL cheerleader. My freshman year of college I went to University of North
Texas and was on the dance team. We performed at football and basketball games.
Just prior to the start of my first semester, I signed with a talent agency in LA so I
was flying back and forth to LA while attending college and busy with practices
for dance. Therefore, I decided to move to LA after my first semester at UNT and
pursue professional dance and modeling.
I had always wanted to be an NFL cheerleader and the professional dance life was
never really the dream so when the Houston Texans auditions came that spring I
flew home to Texas and auditioned, and my life was forever changed.
Being a Houston Texan Cheerleader was the best experience. My family lives in
Houston so I was able to cheer in front of them, I attended University of Houston, I
made the most wonderful friends, and they have the best fans! When I retired from
Texans, I auditioned and made the AZ Cardinals. I lived in Phoenix when I was
young and that is where I began cheering and dancing, so it was a place I always
wanted to represent also as it feels like my second hometown.
In my five years as an NFL Cheerleader, I accomplished everything you can! I
went to Pro Bowl, I went on a USO tour, danced in the Back Street Boys concert,
multiple halftime performances, choreographed routines, featured on a stadium
cup, featured on the side of a bus, I cheered at an International game, in Mexico
City. In addition, the Arizona Cardinals hosted the Super Bowl so I did so many
Super Bowl events and performed at the Super Bowl Pre-Game.
I truly believe that I was able to elevate my career as an NFL cheerleader because I
always gave 110%. Every practice, game, community event I wanted to be there
and knew that these experiences would not last forever and to embrace every
moment! On both my teams I was always referred to as a “go to girl” if anyone
ever had questions, I was always the one with an answer. I was always going above
and beyond and putting in extra hours of practicing, and I would always do the
most appearances. I believe my love for cheer and dedication really made an
impact on everyone and allowed me to create a Legacy for myself.
3. Tell us more about your wide variety of passions - all of which you seem to
excel at! What drives you to succeed in each and do you find them
interconnected at all?
It’s hard for people to keep up with me because I have so many passions!
Dance was always my first love! But since I was very young, I also knew I
always wanted to be a sports reporter. I drew a picture in 4th grade of me
sitting at the ESPN Sports Center desk. In addition, I have always loved fitness
and have a passion for teaching fitness classes.
I now can proudly say that I’m pursuing all my passions. I cheered for five
years in the NFL and was a Pro Bowl Cheerleader, work on the radio for
iHeartMedia, created my own podcasts, am a Showstoppers Dance
Host/Emcee and am HOTWORX Virtual Instructor.
What all my jobs have in common is that they all are a way for me to perform.
I’ve been a performer all my life. I have always said I have an alter ego that
comes out when I perform, and my passions are all related to performing
because that’s what I have excelled at all my life.
I am extremely driven, self-motivated and a perfectionist. I have always been
driven to succeed from within. I’m always striving to be my best version of
myself. Even though I wear a lot of different hats I love everything that I do,
and I give 100% of my efforts to everything!
4. Talk to us about your Sideline Attraction podcast! What was your initial drive
behind creating it and what are your hopes and dreams for it as it continues to
grow?
I created Sideline Attraction because in the media industry it is very hard to
get your foot in the door and get a job. I seriously have probably have over
300 rejection emails, which I keep everyone one of them so someday I can
look back at how hard I tried. Often, I get very far in the process and don’t get
the job because they say I don’t have enough “experience” which is tough
since I have been working in the industry since college. So, I came up with the
podcast to create my own job and create my own experience.
My dream has always been to be a sports reporter so the idea behind Sideline
Attraction is to interview athletes and get to know them beyond the stats on
a more personal level then my listeners can follow their career once they
know their story.
My dream would be for Sideline Attraction to grow substantially so it
could be my full-time job. I am currently a one woman show for
Sideline Attraction. I book the interviews, do the interviews, produce, edit, and
promote it which is all very time consuming. Therefore, if I
could get it sponsored by a podcast media network, I could still do all that but
not have to have all my other jobs and maybe get a little extra sleep!
5. What is the most important lesson you’ve learned over the years and what
advice would you give others based on that lesson?
One of the biggest things I’ve learned in life, don’t be afraid of failure! Life is
tough! You are going to be disappointed! People will tell you that you can’t do
something or you’re not the fit for a team or job and that is fine. Let them,
because it wasn’t meant for you.
The best things in life are often the least expected. When you think about it, if
you were just handed everything, it wouldn’t be as meaningful. I have been
put through the ringer with the number of failures I’ve gotten in life. Failure
hurts but I always say, “everything happens for a reason” and when you fail
you often wonder why?
But I have learned that the reason eventually does show itself and then you
look back and think if I had not failed at this, I may have not gotten something
even better. My success has cancelled out every failure I had prior. So know
that failure is just redirection and how you respond to a situation when you
fail is what shapes the person you are today!
HUGE thank you to Taylor for sharing her story with the MTP fam. I hope this interview has inspired you to live life to the fullest and go after your dreams + passions with full force. Taylor doesn’t hold back with what she is passionate about and I find that extremely admirable. She’s a trailblazer who wants to succeed and share her talent with the world to inspire. Please check out her Instagram and podcast for more. Show a shining light in our community your support!