Lacey Munoz is all too familiar with making an entrance. With stadium lights shining down from above, roaring fans cheering from the sidelines, white boots hitting each mark and poms firmly in hand, this professional dancer has years of practice striding out on a football field – first as a Carroll Emerald Belle and, for the last five years, as a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader. She went from watching “Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team” with her friends in high school to suiting up in the legendary uniform and representing the team every Sunday.
While she is now a staple of the DCC, she recognizes her earlier dance days and high school training led to her current success.
Making The Team
Taking her first dance class at three years old, Lacey got a jump on her career at an early age. While she says there was no big epiphany behind her start, and she credits her sister for inspiring her to pursue the pastime, it quickly became a way to show off her style.
“It sounds cliché, but it really was a way for me to get out of my comfort zone and gain that confidence as a young girl,” Lacey says. “It became my way of expressing myself.”
When high school reared its head, it was a logical progression for her to sign up for Belle tryouts. Lacey joined the team at 14 as a freshman, and according to Emerald Belle Director Melissa Page, quickly began to have an impact on the team.
“Her passion for dance mixed with her incredible kindness towards others was something truly special,” Melissa says. “I knew she was going to contribute so much to the team.”
After four successful years on the Carroll drill team and a year as the team's captain, Lacey carefully considered her next move. She had watched “DCC Making the Team,” the documentary-style TV show following the three-month audition process, on CMT and enjoyed following the assembly of each year's team, but she didn't consider trying out herself until the end of her senior year.
“I knew that I wanted to continue dancing, and I knew that I wanted to do something big, with a
big crowd and big expectations,” Lacey says. “That show, and the DCC, popped back into my mind. I thought to myself ‘That would definitely be a big crowd.'”
So after graduation, she took the leap and signed up for their 2014-2015 team tryouts. For those of you who didn't spend high school watching the CMT show, this involves several weeks and rounds of dance sequences, choreography combos and the infamous kick line. The hopeful dancers are narrowed down to semi-finalists who then perform solo routines to show off their technique and hit the field to perform another choreographed routine.
Those who pass then sit down for interviews and the final cut before their two-month training camp, where women are still cut throughout the process. The women who make it through that intensive period end up creating the most prominent NFL cheerleading squad in the country.
Using her technical background and the skills gained while a Belle, Lacey was just one of approximately 15 rookies to be invited to training camp. And she went on to be one of nine new members of the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders that year.
That level of anxiety and anticipation may sound stressful to most. And Lacey says she has still had that butterfly feeling every audition process after her first, but it was also the setting where she made impactful bonds with the women she would dance alongside.
“The friendships that are made on this team create connections that are not like most and are very hard to explain,” Lacey says. “Some of my closest friends are girls that I sat right next to on that first day of auditions my rookie year.”
Even though Lacey has been on the team for five consecutive seasons, she still says she never thought she would call herself a cheerleader.
“Growing up as a dancer, I always kind of felt like cheerleaders and dancers were not even in the same realm of each other. However, I did not want to grow up to be a ballerina either,” Lacey says. “I took ballet in order to help my technique, but I always had a love for jazz, hip-hop and pom-styled dancing, which is a lot of what I do today as a DCC!”
She had not experienced anything like the intense three-month process of becoming a new Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader, but Lacey credits the Belles for putting her on the right path to reach her goals.
“I owe so much of where I am today to Melissa Page and the Belles program,” Lacey says. “Being a part of that team taught me the importance of punctuality, work ethic, stretching and high kicks and how to be a part of a sisterhood.”
And being captain of her high school squad taught her how to later take a leadership role with the DCC.
“That role prepared me to take on difficulties with confidence even when I questioned if I could succeed,” Lacey says. “It prepared me to give 110 percent and to put the team before myself. It prepared me to never become content and always push myself to be better.
Through all the hard work and determination, Lacey looks back at her days at Carroll ISD as some of the fondest of her life.
“Those were some of the best and most educating years of my life and I truly cherish that team.”
Representing The Part
Lacey has come a long way since her rookie year. This June, she was named one of the eight leaders for the 2018-2019 squad. Growing from a newbie to a lead team member over the past five years, Lacey has developed and learned a great deal from the program along the way.
“My time as a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader has taught me more than I can ever say or probably even recall,” Lacey explains. “Not only has this job helped me to grow as a performer, but also as a speaker, employee, teacher and just a well-rounded person. It has taught me the value of being an ambassador of an organization with great morale and legacy.”
And while it is still her passion for dance and thrill of performing that has kept her going, Lacey says she loves the opportunity to give back through her work.
“Not only do I get to do what I love almost every day, but I also get to give back and help others with the many charity events, kids camps, and USO tours we take part in,” Lacey says. “Other than the rush of performing in front of those big crowds, my favorite part is the happiness I am able to give to others through this job.”
Lacey keeps her schedule busy with hours of practices every weeknight during football season. And with games or appearances on the weekend, the part-time job can start to feel more like a full-time gig, even though the program requires all dancers to have another job or be enrolled in school while on the team. But instead of being bogged down with her busy schedule, Lacey sees each outing as a chance to bring joy to others.
“Merely putting on the beautiful uniform, and giving someone a smile and warm conversation gives me the ability to make someone's day,” Lacey says. “I love when I meet someone and they say, ‘Wow! This is a dream come true.' There is no feeling like it.”
Lacey spends a lot of time inspiring others, whether it be through the DCC camps or meeting young fans around town through various appearances. So when asked what advice she would give to girls who want to follow a similar dance career path, Lacey says to just believe in themselves no matter the odds.
“Make the goal of reaching that dream your motivation within everything you do and every step it takes to get there,” Lacey says. “Stay true to yourself and never let comparison, doubt, or insecurities hold you back from being the you that you want to be.”
Lacey has big plans ahead of her. While she says working for the Dallas Cowboys is an honor, she's excited to see what the next chapter of her life has in store.
Lacey works as a nanny, dance teacher and part-time student working toward a degree in nutrition. While she hopes to finish school and find a career in her line of study, she doesn't plan on venturing too far away from dance anytime soon.
“Dance has always embraced a huge portion of my life, and I don't necessarily see it changing once I retire from DCC,” Lacey says.
Regardless of what comes next for Lacey, she knows she can use her life lessons learned from the Emerald Belle and Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader programs to find success.
“I know that these skills will help me tremendously as I embark on my future journey,” Lacey says.
Until then, she will continue to represent America's football team as they head into their new season. And as far as how their football team will hold up this fall and what is next for the Carroll grad, we will have to follow Lacey's own words: “ I guess we will just have to see!”