Could flag football be the next college sport for girls?
April 23, 2012 by MaxPreps, AZPreps365
Could MaxPreps soon be reporting about the football recruiting war for All-American Jenny Jones, the speedy all-purpose quarterback with the rocket arm?
If Seminole Ridge (Loxahatchee, Fla.) coach Austin Bowe has anything to do with it, colleges will be offering girls flag football as a full-fledged sport in the near future.
"The NCAA has been very receptive," Bowe told the Orlando Sentinel recently. "I can see it happening in the next few years. Why not?"
As reported by the newspaper, Bowe is making that push after helping organize the sport in Florida. Girls flag football is in its 10th year of sanctioning by the Florida High School Athletic Association, and this season's district tournaments will be held today through Wednesday. Dr. Phillips (Orlando, Fla.) is the defending state champion.
Bowe, who serves as the sport's volunteer national director with the Amateur Athletic Union, knows he has a long way to go to make it happen. Currently, Alaska is the only other state that sanctions the sport for playoff purposes, according to the report.
"That's the headwind we're facing," Bowe told the Sentinel. "Once we break through, it will grow incredibly. The number of times I've heard girls say they would change sports if they had flag football in college, I can't count."
If Seminole Ridge (Loxahatchee, Fla.) coach Austin Bowe has anything to do with it, colleges will be offering girls flag football as a full-fledged sport in the near future.
"The NCAA has been very receptive," Bowe told the Orlando Sentinel recently. "I can see it happening in the next few years. Why not?"
As reported by the newspaper, Bowe is making that push after helping organize the sport in Florida. Girls flag football is in its 10th year of sanctioning by the Florida High School Athletic Association, and this season's district tournaments will be held today through Wednesday. Dr. Phillips (Orlando, Fla.) is the defending state champion.
Bowe, who serves as the sport's volunteer national director with the Amateur Athletic Union, knows he has a long way to go to make it happen. Currently, Alaska is the only other state that sanctions the sport for playoff purposes, according to the report.
"That's the headwind we're facing," Bowe told the Sentinel. "Once we break through, it will grow incredibly. The number of times I've heard girls say they would change sports if they had flag football in college, I can't count."
