Move over Betty White, make room for Susie Sanchez!

The Oakland Raiders have hired Sanchez, who’s a Grandma, to their cheerleading roster for 2011-12 NFL football season (that is, if we have a 2011-2012 football season).

While Susie is technically a Grandma, Nana, MiMi, MeMaw or whatever she is called, she may not be what pops in your mind when you think of Raiders Cheerleader. Susie is 37, a mother of three and grandma of one, and after multiple auditions to pom-pom it up on the sideline, she finally got the call.

From the Hollister Pinnacle …

Sanchez again impressed the judges with her dancing ability, skill and presence later that week — she had been dancing since she was 8, after all — and she can now safely say she is the oldest member of the Raiderettes as well.

“I just started crying,” she said after she heard her number called — lucky No. 45. “It was like, ‘wow.’ I was overwhelmed with emotion … just never give up.”

[Related: The oldest cheerleader in the NFL]

Hard to imagine, but Susie isn’t the first MeMaw to make the cheerleading squad for Oakland. There was Kathy Ferrin, who was pinned a Raiderette back in ’03-04, but still pretty impressive considering most cheerleaders barely look old enough to vote.

Many people give up on their dreams long before they hit 30, no matter if that is a basketball player or doctor or even cheerleader, but it seems she’s kept trying and finally landed it. I‘m sure she was ridiculed, told not to pursue, talked about – put she persevered. Kudos to you, Suzi!

But does this make Susie the oldest cheerleader in the NFL? Nope! That would be the Bengals’ Laura Vikmanis, who is 42 and still going strong.

Congrats to these older women who are still looking great and pursuing their childhood fantasies 🙂