While many students were cheering on the Panthers in Super Bowl 50 from their couches, Chandalae Lanouette was cheering from the sidelines. On top of being a student at NC State, Lanouette cheers for the TopCats, the Carolina Panthers cheerleading team.

Lanouette, a sophomore studying English, first came to NC State and joined the dance team in 2008. Two years later, she decided to move back home to Winston-Salem to help her mother with her dance studio. Now that the business is growing and running well, Lanouette has decided to return to school, but she still lives in Winston-Salem and has to wake up at 5:30 a.m. for her morning commute.

“You definitely have to want to be back in school,” Lanouette said.

Although it might seem unlikely that being an NFL cheerleader would make someone want to come back to school, Lanouette said that being a part of the TopCats ultimately inspired her to go back to school. Being around professional sports sparked her interest in the entertainment side of the industry, so she came back to school to study sports management. However, Lanouette is still in the process of changing majors.

Lanouette said that being a part of the TopCats also taught her time management. Now, along with her excitement about being back in school, she is dedicated and committed to her goals.

“It’s cool to find something that wakes you up in the morning and makes you want to jump out of bed,” Lanouette said.

Lanouette said it was surreal being at the Super Bowl in front of so many fans and having the privilege of supporting the team, especially since it is only her second season with the TopCats. Her favorite part was finally being able to support the team at an away game and getting to travel to San Francisco, since the TopCats do not normally get to travel with the team.

“We got to do a giant pep rally in San Francisco, which was really cool, to be all the way on the West Coast and to be completely surrounded by Panther fans,” Lanouette said.

When asked about her favorite part of being a member of the TopCats, Lanouette said that for her it’s actually not about being in front of huge crowds or getting to be around the players. In fact, she generally doesn’t see all that much of the players. TopCats practice is held in a separate part of the stadium, and when both the cheerleaders and players are practicing, they are there to work rather than socialize.

Lanouette said she’s only been around Cam Newton once, and that was when she was one of the four TopCats selected to be in the Dannon Oikos commercial with the quarterback. If you look closely enough, you can see her in the opening scene of the commercial.

For Lanouette, the fancy things aren’t the best part of being a member of the TopCats. What is most rewarding for her is being able to participate in all of the community outreach programs the Panthers organization does.

“The way that the Panthers affect the community, and the way that they have each of us setup to interact with the community is really one-on-one and really rewarding,” Lanouette said. “Initially, I started out doing this for myself, to prove that I could do it, but now it’s about what more I can do to help.”

On game days, Lanouette said that while she loves cheering on the team, her favorite part of is being able to interact with the fans before the game.

Next fall, Lanouette said that she looks forward to the challenge of balancing school with the more strenuous regular season schedule. She is optimistic about the chances of another successful season for the Panthers football team.

She didn’t want to jinx anything by calling for a return to the Super Bowl, but she did say, “As a TopCat, I always have high hopes, and I definitely think that next season will be another one for the record books.”