Air Force Captain Proposes To Cheerleader During NFL Game

Eric Straub, a 26-year-old Air Force captain who had just returned from deployment in the Middle East, surprised his girlfriend, a cheerleader for the Arizona Cardinals, when he proposed to her right in front of thousands of spectators during an NFL game on Sunday.

Dressed in his flight suit, Straub got down on one knee and asked Claire Thornton, 24, to marry him - a proposal that got a resounding "Yes!" from the excited crowd.

The marriage proposal happened during the break between the first and second quarter of the Cardinals' game against Washington Redskins, and was shown on the giant video screen in the stadium.

Thornton told TODAY.com "It was pretty amazing. I was shaking really bad. He's like 'Put the ring on!' And I'm like, you put it on me!' The best part about everything is that my whole family was there and his whole family was there, and I was doing what I love with the people I love. It was the epitome of the best day ever."

Sharing his own side of the story, Straub said: "Claire had no idea what was going on. I just wanted it to be special for her, and I wanted her to be surprised. I saw they had 'Claire, will you marry me?' up on the screen and I had missed my cue, so I got over there quickly.

"It was so loud you couldn't hear anything. I had all these things I wanted to say, but once I got down on my knee, I had no idea what to say. I think all I said was, 'I love you marry me!' It was funny."

Thornton's cheerleading teammates then celebrated with her after the game.

Absolutely romantic!