At Orchard Park, New York’s ADPRO Sports Training Centre, the Buffalo Bills hosted the Girls High School Flag Football Kickoff on Saturday. Several Bills players and coaches, including Tyrell Shavers, Andy Isabella, and Kendall Williamson, as well as new defensive coordinator Bobby Babich, attended the event.
“Almost sixty teams are scheduled to participate over the course of the weekend,” stated Preston Teague, Senior Director of Youth Football and Programmes for the Buffalo Bills. “We’re really proud of how quickly it’s grown and how popular it is at the high school level.”
The Buffalo Bills organization has played a crucial role in the development of girls’ flag football in Western New York. In April 2023, the Section VI Girls Flag Football Tournament took place at the ADPRO Training Center at One Bills Drive. Bills’ players Micah Hyde, Trent Sherfield, Siran Neal, and Kaiir Elam were present at the event to witness all the action. In June 2023, the first-ever Flag Football Regional Game was hosted by the Bills, featuring players from Clarence High School and Canisteo-Greenwood High School at Highmark Stadium. Prior to the game, Dawson Knox, Dion Dawkins, and Dalton Kincaid made surprise visits to the girls and provided them with access to the locker rooms, each equipped with custom locker name plates for the high school players. Two years ago, Flag Football was introduced as a spring sport in high schools across New York, and this year, the New York State Public High School Athletic Association is officially recognizing the sport with an official NYSPHSAA State Championship in June. In celebration of the NYSPHSAA’s decision to recognize flag football, the Bills invited high school players from Cheektowaga High School and Lackawanna High School to their divisional round playoff game at Highmark Stadium in January. These local high school flag football players participated in a scrimmage during halftime and had the opportunity to be on the field as the Bills’ starting players entered the game. Teague expressed his pride in the sport’s rapid progress, acknowledging the challenges of introducing new sports and the effort required to build momentum. He commended the coaches and players for their role in growing the sport and serving as role models for future generations of girls.
