CROSBY, Texas — Mike Ramirez is a high school football player who spent most of his time on the bench last season and works part-time at a local McDonald’s. Caitlyn is a Texans cheerleader whose life is devoted to intense workouts, coaching tumbling classes and studying communications at the University of Houston.
Yet 10,000 retweets later, the two are a prom couple.
For “Big Mike,” as he’s been known to his friends since his sophomore year at Crosby High School in suburban Houston, it all started as a joke during 3rd period, when Caitlyn — who, as per Texans policy, isn’t allowed to give her last name — followed him on a “Twitter following spree.”
“I was all like, ‘What if I took a Texans cheerleader to prom?’” Ramirez recalled asking his classmate. “He was like, ‘That would be pretty cool.’”
So Ramirez sent Caitlyn a message.
Twenty-seven hours later, the high school senior, who had recently broken up with his girlfriend, had a date — as well as a lot of semi-envious, semi-genuine “attaboy” tweets from friends and dozens of new Twitter followers.
“It was just as a joke,” Ramirez said. “I didn’t think I was going to actually get it.”
The Texans decided the prom would be a blind date. All Ramirez knew about Caitlyn before they met was that her favorite color is pink and she likes sushi.
The two met Saturday night at Churrascos, an upscale Latin American restaurant, for dinner before the prom.
Ramirez arrived first, with his mom, Monica Cortez, and eight of his friends.
Then Caitlyn arrived in a limousine, and six other Texans cheerleaders in uniform were at the restaurant to support her.
Ramirez opened the limo door for her, and she stepped out and gave him a hug. They exchanged a corsage and boutonniere.
Journalists were surrounding the limo when it arrived. When asked if there would be a second date, Michael indicated that he was hopeful for one — or even a wedding, he said jokingly.
As for Caitlyn, she said, “I plead the Fifth.”
They went to prom at the Houston Museum of Natural Science after dinner.
“In the very beginning to me it was just one of his pranks because that’s just who Mike is. He likes to play around and joke around a lot, but I figured if he set his mind to it, it would work out,” Cortez said.