Dream come true for this Cowboys fan

He was highly conspicuous on the Veterans Memorial Stadium concourse with his cowboy hat and boots, long-sleeved striped shirt and state of Texas belt.

The blue and white roses he was carrying made him stand out even more.

Forgive Jim Ward, though. This night was a dream come true.

"I've wanted to see these girls for 40 years," Ward said, with a gleam in his eye.

The 62-year-old made the hour drive from Center Junction to watch the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders perform during Thursday night's Cedar Rapids Kernels-Kane County game. Kane County won, 2-1.

He's seen them countless times on television, but this was live and in person. And it was priceless.

"They've always kind of reminded me of the old-fashioned cowboys and cowgirls in the old westerns," Ward said. "Cheerleaders uniforms were all the same, but these girls were different.

"Let's put it this way. I always watched the Cowboys to watch the cheerleaders."

There were a lot of folks wearing Cowboys gear on NFL Night at the ballpark. You'd see a few other teams sprinkled in here or there, but this was a Dallas crowd.

Or a Dallas cheerleaders crowd.

"People always ask me who my favorite team is," Ward said. "And I say the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders."