Caila (S9 Rookie)

* 18-years-old from Texas. She wants to be a DCC because she was groomed to be one from 4-years-old. She was taught by two former Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (*one of which appears to be Sarah Gourley*) and was a Jr. Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader. She did many halftime shows with the Cowboys. Being on the field came naturally. If she doesn’t become a DCC, it will be devastating, as it’s her dream.

## **Confessionals**

Total: 19

Season 9: 16 (T8th most)

Season 10: 0

Season 11: 3

### **Season 9**

**(9.1)**

* [Waiting for semifinals results with Breelan] Breelan: “I’m a little nervous sitting in here, waiting for a really long time.“ Caila: “Waiting.“

**(9.2)**

* *(Biography)*
* [Practice with Kitty Carter] “She literally clawed my leg up and it knocked me over. I will not let her get under my skin for tryouts.“
* [Invited to training camp] “I can’t believe it!“

**(9.3)**

* “My main focus this summer will be making this team. I’m going to do everything possible.“
* “They used to call me “the elephant” because I’d always land really hard on the ground, so that’s kind of been my problem my whole life dancing.“

**(9.4)**

* “I’m a little worried. I’ve never done a jump split before, so I’m a little nervous.“
* [Does a jump split] “First time is kind of like, “ooh, scary“.”

**(9.6)**

* [Critiqued] “It’s really strange for me, because I usually am confident in everything I do. I am the youngest here, so it makes me step back for a second and be like, “Okay, I’m not the best at all“.”
* “It does worry me some that I am on Kelli’s radar tonight. I know I did not perform my best. I’m just still working hard, trying to just prove to them that I can make this team this year.“
* [Mentoring] “When my parents walked into the room, I was very shocked. It was crazy.“
* “My parents being here, what they said to me, that helped me so much, and I’m ready to make this team.“
* “So, I think my kicks were a little off tonight, because obviously I’m nervous. I’m going to do everything I can to show, like my parents said, I can push myself to be the greatest I can be.“

**(9.7)**

* “Of course, I think it’s gonna be a cut night, so I’m a little nervous, but I’m trying not to freak out. I’m trying to keep my composure.“

**(9.8)**

* [After making team] “I just wanted to show my family and friends how hard I’ve worked. It’s actually paid off on that stage, and I’m an official Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader.“
* [Pre-game after messing up in rehearsal] “The rehearsal today was a little tough on me. I really just want to show Kelli and Judy that they picked the right girl for this team.“

### **Season 11**

**(11.2)**

* “Going into third year, there's a lot more expectations, but I think (the judges) are going to be excited by what they see this year. I've grown a lot. Being a DCC means the world to me. This organization's amazing. When we go visit children’s hospitals and nursing homes, those are my favorite things to do. I really want it bad, obviously.“
* [About panel question] “Political questions are tough because people are opinionated [*struggles with question about Trump's wall*] and I think it does get harder since every year you have more to lose.“
* [Not invited back to training camp] “Probably wasn’t as prepared as I could have been this year, so that’s my fault. Disappointed in myself. That’s the hardest part. I let myself down. I let Kelli and Judy down… [*to camera*] Can I go, please?“

## **Commentary**

### **Season 9**

**(9.2)**

* [Pre-finals session] “You in the back, blonde hair, tell me your story.“ – Kitty Carter/“I’m just a studio dancer.“ – Caila/“Just a studio dancer?“ – Kitty [*leads into Caila’s biography*]… “So, you missed the first four counts. If it takes you that long to get your engine started, you’re going to be on the Titanic, right? So, I need you to go hit, and just scrape those tights up your body.“ – Kitty
* “Good grief. I mean, why do I have to do that?“ – Kitty
* “Break it, break it. Exactly. Go that little extra inch so people go, oh, what’s she doing?“ – Kitty
* “Isn’t she pretty?“ – Kelli

**(9.3)**

* “Caila’s heavy on the down.“ – Judy
* “Your kicks are real heavy on the down side. It’s like, “Step, kick, clunk. Step, kick, clunk.” You need to work on holding up, being real pretty and light on your feet.“– Judy
* “Caila does not (have a great presence). She is stiff.“ – Judy
* “Good style; a few mistakes.“ – Judy

**(9.4)**

* “You’re winded. You have great, long legs, you have potential, but you’re not trained or in shape yet for kicklines.“ – Kelli
* “Straighten your arms.“ – Kelli
* “You’re just kind of loosey goosey, so we’ll need to control.“ – Kelli

**(9.6)**

* “I’m not getting confidence out of you right now.“ – Kelli/“Own it. Like, this is a fun dance, and to get low and kind of shake your shoulders, and give a fun little wink here and there.“
* [To her and Breelan] “You’re both kind of in the same boat, okay? You both look like I could put you in a uniform, but I can’t put you in a uniform yet. I’ve told you this before – you don’t want to go home because you’re in your head. When you have the dance ability and you have the look, you don’t want to go home because you were too shy and quiet. I’m going to put my thinking cap on. I’m going to see you guys, and we’re going to get creative.“ – Melissa Rycroft
* [Mentoring session] “I brought you in both (with Breelan) today because you have a very similar issue, and it’s just confidence.“ – Melissa
* “I think the fact that Breelan and Caila get to hear feedback from their parents, I think that’s going to be the one thing that they need that’s going to make this all click.“ – Melissa
* “I hope this intervention does help Caila through the process. Knowing that she’s so close, it’s just, the pressure is on even more.“ – Caila’s mom
* [Melissa shows Caila feedback] “So, what do you think?“ – Melissa/“I don’t know.“ – Caila/“She’s doing it now. You’re tall. You’re blonde. You’re going to stand out on that field. You’re beautiful, and you just need to own it.“– Melissa/“Honey, you have it. You tore your hip and knee up and danced. I mean, you’ve just overcome so much. You’ve wanted this for so long. It’s in there, and you’ve just gotta grab it.“ – Caila’s mom/“You’ve always trained to finish. You’ve always risen to the top on all this. You’re there, fourth quarter, two minutes left. Just push through.“ – Caila’s dad
* “I think everybody here believes you guys have it. I believe that you have it. And you’re so close. Y’all know this. And the last thing you want to do is be your own worst enemy and get in your own head.“ – Melissa
* “Today was supposed to help the girls. I wanted to show them what they looked like. I wanted to bring in people that loved them and know them better than anybody else, to hopefully say it in a way that they’ll understand and that they’ll walk away more confident than they came in.“– Melissa
* “Pretty good power on the field, still a little clumsy.“ – Kelli
* “Sloppy in kickline.“ – Kelli
* “We can’t have a tall blonde who’s sloppy and clunky.“ – Kelli

**(9.7)**

* “Caila’s bold. But she’s clumsy.“ – Kelli
* “Sometimes you are a little clumsy.“ – Judy
* “Your kicks are lower than Kinzie’s, and you’ve got to be higher.“ – Judy

**(9.8)**

* “You do dance with some power, but then you’re still cutting off a lot of counts. If there’s supposed to be a pause, you’re not doing the pause in there. You’re just kind of rushing through all the steps.“ – Judy
* [After making team] “We are so super excited and just feel very, very blessed that our daughter made the squad.“ – Caila’s mom
* [Pre-game rehearsal] “Caila rushes. She’s the only one that scares me in the kickline.“ – Judy
* “Ooh, Caila, you’re rushing bad. I don’t know what to do with Caila.“ – Judy
* “We’re going to have Shelly McCaslin, who is our technique coach, talk to her and work with her directly.“ – Kelli
* “Training camp is over, and so, today you’re going to have so many different distractions, but you need to stay inside your head in a really positive way. You can do this. Don’t let other things get to you. You can do it.“ – Shelly McCaslin
* “I’m still not feeling 100% sure that Caila is polished enough to be on this field her first game. She has struggled with the kickline.“ – Judy
* “I do feel like she’s just kind of lost in her head and trying to manage her thoughts about all of this.“ – Shelly
* “I mean, she may not be deserving of being on this field again.“ – Kelli

### **Season 11**

**(11.2)**

* [Finals deliberation] “Caila's solo, I felt a heaviness. A physical heaviness and a heaviness in dance… Caila definitely has some strikes against her.“ – Kelli
* “Caila’s a little soft. I mean you can just see it.“ – Kelli
* “Caila’s gained weight. I was hoping she would come with her best, but if all the judges love her, she deserves to be considered for this team.“ – Kelli
* “How many no’s [most people raise hands] Based on weight, figure?“ – Kelli/“Figure.“/“I like her and know what the issue is, everything else is just fine.“ – Randy Steele

## **End of Journey**

### **Season 11**

**(11.2)**

* Veteran cut at finals.

## **Other**

### **Season 9**

**(9.1)**

* She’s shown being invited to finals.

**(9.2)**

* She’s shown being invited to training camp.

**(9.3)**

* Before the opening meeting, she and Breelan agree that they want the cheerleader uniform in the display case at Valley Ranch.

**(9.5)**

* Briefly shown walking the runway at the Belk fashion show.

**(9.6)**

* Melissa Rycroft pulls her and Breelan out for a conversation during rehearsal, and then arranges a mentoring session with her and Breelan at the Verandah Club, where she surprises them with their families.

**(9.8)**

* Her parents get a confessional before the Meet the Team event.
* She’s the Group 1 representative to compete in the shooting competition.
* In pre-game rehearsal for the first preseason game, Caila becomes the main focus of concern from Judy, and she’s shown crying as she leaves the field.

### **Season 10**

**(10.4)**

* She gets 50 push-ups in the 2-minute challenge.

**(10.5)**

* As part of Shelbi’s impromptu office visit, when she’s listing her friends that made the team last season, she mentions Ashley, Caila, and Breelan.

**(10.7)**

* When a list of scores from auditions is shown on screen, by process of elimination, it can be determined that she was ranked in the top 5 at finals.

### **Season 11**

**(11.2)**

* Struggles in solo at finals.
* Struggles with political question in panel interview.

## **Misc.**

* Former Texas Stars Dancer