Q & A: Rev Girl Jen Swain

Photo credit: Kari Heistad/capturedimages.biz

Jen Swain is a longtime New England Revolution fan who officially joined the club last spring as a Rev Girl. New England Soccer Today writer Julian Cardillo caught up with Jen to learn more about the Rev Girls and her role on the team.

Julian Cardillo: Can you talk about how you first discovered the opportunity to become a Rev Girl?

Jen Swain: I was at a Revolution game once in college and I saw them, but before that, I was at school in Rochester. So there was a really good opportunity to join the Rev Girls when I transferred to Brandeis, much closer to Foxborough. I looked into it, found out they were holding tryouts, and I applied.

JC: Can you talk about the selection process to become a Rev Girl?

JS: Yes! Everybody submits their résumé, some pictures, and a little bit about themselves, and then there are initial interviews at Gillette Stadium in which you talk about yourself and everyone sees what you’re like. If you’re selected to advance you go to Rev Girl finals. Mine was at the Greatest Bar in Boston. There’s a trivia portion, where you answer questions about the Revs. Ours was a facial recognition test, where we were shown photos of the Revolution players and had to correctly identify them. Then we had a fan interaction portion, where we talked to fans throughout the bar and did some giveaways. Then we had a question and answer forum, where we were asked questions and had to think on our feet. The judges tabulate everything. We had some really cool judges, like Miss Massachusetts, Riley Smith from the Bruins, and some radio show hosts.

JC: Before becoming a Rev Girl, did you go to Revolution games often?

JS: I used to go with my soccer team. When I was younger, my girls’ soccer teams would go together and it would be our night out. I was at the very first Revolution home game ever at Gillette Stadium. I was on the field and I stole a piece of turf and it’s still framed in my bedroom. It’s a true story. I thought I was so cool. I was like “this is Gillette Stadium” and I grabbed a piece of grass off the field. And I met Bob Kraft that day.

JC: Which team were you on for that?

JS: I was with my Concord youth soccer traveling team. We got to go through that giant soccer ball blowup tunnel.

JC: Which position did you play?

JS: I was a forward, a right striker.

JC: Did you score a lot of goals?

JS: Duh.

JC: Speaking of scoring goals, what do you think about the Revolution’s offense this year?

JS: Jermaine Jones is a huge benefit; he’s creating a lot of opportunities for players. I like Lee Nguyen, too. He does a really good job of making sure he scores goals and puts himself in good positions. And he’s a really good penalty kick shooter.

JC: What’s a typical game day like for a Rev Girl?

JS: We show up a couple of hours before the game, and we go to our dressing room, and we have a game plan we go over. It’s a plan of everywhere we have to be during the game. We get all our hair and makeup done. We all have different positions we go to before the game. Some of us are at the social media zone; some of us are handing out flyers in the East club. We’re all positioned throughout the stadium so we can interact with fans. Once the rally tunnel starts, some of us are there and some of us are in the stands leading a cheer. From there, we are usually at our table before we go to halftime and do the t-shirt toss and lucky Rowe. We pick a jersey winner every game and a President’s Club upgrade. It’s a lot of interaction with the fans.

JC: Are there a few things that you do every game or do you do a little bit of everything?

JS: We definitely do a little bit of everything. You try to switch it up so that there’s never one girl doing the same thing every game. But we’re also leading the Revolution chant no matter where we are at the game. And we’re always signing our posters.

JC: So on game days, what’s your favorite job?

JS: I really like doing the t-shirt toss. It’s so much fun being on the field. People are screaming for you, and you get to throw the t-shirts at the fans and it’s great to see the enthusiasm. I always try to get them to some little kids who are very excited and very into it.

JC: Can you provide the readers with an update on the air cannon?

JS: The air cannon works, for the most part. Occasionally the air cannon will stall out. You just have to make sure you put the right drops of oil in it.

JC: Can you give us a clue as to Slyde’s identity?

JS: Slyde is a fox, and he’s the Revolution’s mascot.

JC: Obviously the Rev Girls do a lot outside of games. You do a lot of community service and promotions. Is there anything that’s been really eye-opening for you?

JS: Yes, we got to do a Prom to Remember, at the Ritz Carlton in Boston. It was the first time they’d ever done it in Boston. It was for kids who had cancer and missed their high school prom. A bunch of salons chipped in and did hair and makeup, and got them dresses, and the kids took a limo to the Ritz Carlton. We got to be there to hang out with them and dance with them and it was really special. Some of the players were there too. It was nice to see kids who missed their prom finally have the opportunity.

JC: Okay, time for some rapid-fire questions. Who is your favorite player on the current Revolution roster?

JS: Lee Nguyen.

JC: Who is your favorite Revolution player of all-time?

JS: Taylor Twellman.

JC: Who is the Revolution’s all-time leading scorer?

JS: Taylor Twellman.

JC: Okay, that one was easy. Who do you think the Revolution’s biggest rival is?

JS: Sporting Kansas City.

JC: What is your favorite cheer?

JS: The classic, “Rev-o-lu-tion” cheer done at the start of games.

JC: Any fun facts about you?

JS: I can touch my nose with my tongue.

JC: Finishing up, what advice would you give to someone who is interested in being a Rev Girl?

JS: Definitely study up on soccer. Make sure you’re really personable, engaging, and passionate about what you do. I think that being able to talk to anybody is really important because as a Rev Girl, you talk to all sorts of fans. You start to recognize the fans and season ticket holders and you have to be kind and engaging to everybody.

Go Revs!