After a break last season due to a lack of players, the club sport of flag football is back at St. Ignatius High School, and the team is fired up for this season, according to coach Jason Sargent.

The club has brought a total of 12 players for this season, and Sargent said it is a year of rebuilding the sport as “everybody’s” team is growing.

Tony Incashola and Sargent, who is also the district superintendent, co-coach the team. Sargent explained that the sport is similar to 8-man football, played on an 80-yard field, but with seven players from each team on the field at a time. He added that there are no linemen, meaning everyone is eligible to run or catch the ball. But with seven players, Sargent said, “it makes it tricky to cover everything” defensively.  

Sargent explained that this was a student-started sport, with a now-graduated student, Amelia (Cronk) Umphrey, discovering it and telling him, “Hey, we should do this.” The Atlanta Falcons and the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation sponsored the club's start-up in 2023 and for the following two seasons through a grant. This is part of the Falcons’ larger effort to fund girls' flag football across Montana, Georgia and the United States. 

Sargent said he believes there are about 28 teams statewide, with many schools making it a summer sport. He said that in the first few years, schools weren't divided into classes because of the small number of teams, but now they're divided into Class AA and Class B. 

He explained that the team has had the opportunity to play in some home tournaments, which helps build exposure, and he’s hoping that will create more student interest in the sport. Sargent said the sport has given girls who enjoy football a chance to participate. 

“They just enjoy competing; it’s something that’s new, and something they enjoy and want to be a part of,” Sargent said. 

But flag football isn’t just growing at St. Ignatius. According to the USA Football website, its popularity is “exploding” across the United States, with “women and girls driving the sport's growth.” 

“Flag is blowing up. I'll be curious how long it takes for it to become a sanctioned sport for girls,” Sargent said. 

USA Football’s website reported that the number of girls ages 6-17 playing has increased by 57.1% since 2015, and the sport has taken off at the collegiate level, with the NCAA considering women’s flag football part of its Emerging Sport for Women program. 

The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation website noted that the sport’s trajectory is “stunning and unprecedented,” with the number of competitors more than tripling over the past three years. The website also stated that the International Olympic Committee approved the sport for men and women in 2023, and that it will debut at the 2028 Olympics. 

Sargent said if it becomes a sanctioned sport, they would more than likely ask Charlo and Arlee to join them to form a co-op team. He added that coaching these girls has been a lot of fun, and being part of flag is probably the funniest thing he’s done after years of coaching boys. 

“It’s been a great experience for the girls that want to compete, and it’s a lot of fun teaching a new sport,” he said. 

Since the sport is only a club sport, many players are dual-sport athletes, leaving time for only one weekly flag football practice, he said. But Sargent said they are a quality team, highly competitive and fired up to improve, even with only a month-long season. 

The team’s next match will be against Jefferson and Sentinel at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 17. 

 Keiran Incashola looks for a teammate to make a pass to during the team's game against Hamilton on Aug. 27. (Emily Messer/Leader)

 Raleigh McDonald pulls the flags on a Hamilton player during their home match against the team on Aug. 27. (Emily Messer/Leader)