CMS leads the way in recognizing girls flag football in high school sports.
by Ashley Stroehlein
They’re fierce, tough and competitive. With each practice and game, the girls of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ flag football program are proving they belong.
“It’s harder than it looks for sure — it’s a very athletic sport. It has all of the components of regular football that men play,” says Myers Park High School senior and fourth-year flag football player Ava Haygood. “You have to use that fierceness and put it into energy.”
Haygood started playing in 2022, the same year the Carolina Panthers piloted a girls flag football program for CMS. The response was overwhelming. Organizers expected a few schools to sign on. Instead, an incredible 20 out of 21 high schools joined the Panthers’ flag football initiative, along with Charlotte Catholic.
Now, there are 30 teams competing, and every CMS high school has a varsity team. The demand for junior varsity teams is growing, too.
“I think now as we’re going into year four, we have narrowed it down to the kids that are very serious,” says Ericia Turner, CMS executive director of athletics. “They’re more competitive. We’re going out here to win.”
Coach Hannah Smith and player; Ava Haygood, photos by Ashley Stroehlein
Championing women in football is not a new priority for the Panthers, who will host the CMS Athletics Girls High School Flag Football Championship on May 18. Former head coach Ron Rivera became the first NFL head coach to hire a female assistant. Before becoming CEO of Tepper Sports and Entertainment, Kristi Coleman was team president, one of only two in the NFL at the time.
Now another barrier is falling away — participation.
“When you look at how girls and women are engaging in the sport of football… it’s really remarkable,” says Riley Fields, director of community relations for the Carolina Panthers. “The girls have a real hunger and desire to compete,” he says, noting their intensity about the game. “I’d also say that there is a level of joy in how they compete.”
Ask any coach or player, they’ll tell you — flag football is the real deal.
“Flag has made me change so much as a person,” Haygood says about the benefit of being part of her team. “I love being outside playing the sport, and I just think it’s such a great outlet for me.”
“The girls coming to try out have been coming with more and more talent,” says Myers Park flag football coach Hannah Smith. It’s a testament, she says, to more student-athletes taking the sport seriously.
Coach Brooke Simmons; running drills at practice
Leading the way
Statewide, 17 school districts — and counting — have flag football pilot programs. Fields says CMS laid the groundwork for that statewide growth.
“Our intentions have been clear from the start. We want to see the sport sanctioned as a varsity sport in the state, which would be transformative from the standpoint that you’re providing girls with a new outlet of participation,” Fields says.
Flag football is currently sanctioned in 14 states. Once that happens in North Carolina, high school teams would be eligible to compete for a varsity state championship.
“We hope that it becomes a sanctioned sport,” says Brooke Simmons, another flag football coach at Myers Park. “I think that just getting it out there and getting more support… will help.”
Moments on the field during the CMS Athletics Girls High School Flag Football Championship Tournament at Bank of America Stadium, 2022 and 2023
While there’s no state championship trophy to compete for this season, there’s still pride in taking the field.
“It’s bigger than the Xs and Os, right?,” says Turner. “I want them to understand that they’re part of — I don’t call it history — I call it HERstory. They’re creating a legacy for people [who are] coming behind them.”
With every touchdown, Turner says these student-athletes are challenging societal norms and shrugging off the naysayers. SP
Photography courtesy Carolina Panthers and Ashley Stroehlein
