Fast, Furious, And Flagged: The Rise Of Flag Football  By Alissa Alvarado

Flag football encourages players to develop strong communication skills on the field, which naturally translates into better social skills and clearer conversations in everyday life. According to National Flag Football, “Football teaches kids how to effectively communicate and work well with others. After all, one player can’t do everything. They rely on each other—what a better way to make long-lasting friendships? Layer this with learning to respect and receive direction from authority (aka coaches) and you have a range of socialization skills.” Jade Hinds, a player from Hillgrove High schools flag football team , shares the meaningful part of flag football is the support they give each other on and off field, “My teammates they encourage me a lot, and I encourage them were like one big family and yeah,” Team work and connection helps players 

grow not just as athletes but as people. 

Motivation plays a keep role in flag football, pushing players to improve their skills, supporting their teammates and giving their best effort every time they step on the field. Based on Youth Football Online, “Motivating athletes is probably one of the most challenging things for coaches. This is because every player on your team is unique in their own way. Some players respond to encouragement. Some players need tough love” Simi Oni Bokan, a player from Hillgrove High schools flag football team, expresses staying focus and motivated comes from other people in her life “I think specifically, I have one coach in mind who I always go back to and think about what he would say and so he's my motivation and he encourages me.  Motivation is a personal journey, and finding what each player is like is the key.  

Pressure in tough cans for flag football can be challenging, especially if it's a close game, it can test the players confidence and ability to play in those game-like situations. As stated in USA Football, “it’s not just quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers who deal with pressure and deserve the “clutch player” moniker. Every player on a football team has the potential to break down under pressure at the end of the game and cause the team to lose or do exactly what it takes to win.” Melanie Dansby, a player from Hillgrove High schools flag football team, describes how high pressure games are for her and how she is able to maintain it,“ Um, I try to have a next play mindset and just believe it's not my fault and it's not on me and I'll think about it after the game and not during the game.” Flag Football is a very overlook sport to many but it has the same game like situations as any other sport.