photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State's Sarai Preston, left, and Hallie Vail, right, celebrate a sack in the flag football state tournament at Olathe East High School on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, in Olathe.

Two and a half months ago, both Free State and Lawrence’s girls flag football teams started their inaugural seasons.

Both teams were hoping at least seven girls would show up, just enough to field a team and allow a few backups while a number of girls played both offense and defense. What ended up happening at the first practice far surpassed either teams’ coaches.

“We didn’t have enough jerseys at first,” Free State quarterback Quinlyn Vail said.

Free State and Lawrence participated in their first season of flag football, which was put on by the Kansas City Chiefs through the NFL’s flag football program. The Chiefs provided teams with jerseys, equipment, referees and more, helping schools start and grow their flag football teams.

One year in and the results have been a success for the players. The teams have provided the players a chance to play a new game and learn football while also giving them a new sport to consider at the college level.

“It’s such a fun game, and the fact that (Free State and Lawrence) had over 25 girls on shows that there’s a need for it and that they’re excited to play and continue the sport,” Lawrence coach Marci Leuschen said at the beginning of the season.

The start of the season was a challenge for the two teams. The teams had about five practices as a group before their first games, and with it being a club and not a sport, the structure and requirements for practices were different than what typically would happen for a team sport.

“We didn’t know what to expect coming in,” Free State coach Adam Barmann said. “These kids were unbelievable this year. The growth and maturity they showed from our first practice to (Saturday) is a night-and-day difference, and it’s truly a credit to them.”

The NAIA had 23 universities competing in women’s flag football during the 2024-25 season, including nine from the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference. It’s a less than 30-minute drive from both Free State and Lawrence to get to Baker University, which is one of the nine schools in the KCAC that compete in flag football.

Both local schools’ teams consisted mostly of basketball and softball players who do not compete in sports in the fall. The only football experience many had was a once a year powder puff game where girls at the high school play a flag football game.

Along with being football fans, many players on the teams grew up playing catch. Vail was taught how to throw a football by her dad for when she went tailgating at games. Fellow Firebird Sarai Preston is a softball player, and she and her dad would play catch with a football to improve her tracking ability for softball.

Now, having played the sport, the girls have grown in their understanding of it and the strategy behind it.

“We can read the defense better on the offensive side and get in the open space,” Free State receiver Addie Fulscher said. “We can see it, rather than just run the route.”

Lawrence quarterback Macyn Ramsay played flag football against boys when she was younger. A friend of her dad’s was a coach, and knowing how competitive Ramsay was, he invited her to play. That started her flag football journey, which, years later, led her to being a part of the inaugural Lawrence flag football program.

“When I saw it, I was like, of course I’ll play,” Ramsay said at the beginning of the season. “I knew the powder puff fundraiser was a thing, but I never thought there would be a whole team. It’s been great.”

A flag football clinic was held for the local high school girls at the end of last school year, which helped determine how many people might be interested in playing. Later, when the players found out that their school would put on an actual team, they were quick to recruit teammates from other sports.

Two months into playing football has already given some players the idea that their future might lie on the gridiron, rather than on the court or the diamond. Preston has been reaching out to colleges about joining their flag football team.

“I was always going to do softball in college, but now I want to do flag football,” Preston said.

For the coaches, it’s been an impressive and fun experience. Barmann said the team started with breaking down what each position is on the first day of practice, along with eight plays. Nobody on Free State had played football in any organized capacity before, yet the team finished in the state tournament semifinal on Saturday.

“It’s a process of learning a new language, and they picked it up quickly,” Barmann said. “I wish (the season) wasn’t over — I feel like we’re just now hitting our stride as a team. But that’s sports.

“We’re extremely excited for what’s coming back. Most of these kids are multisport athletes, so I can’t wait to watch them play basketball or softball in the spring. Once we get back, it’ll be a lot of fun with new pieces, and we’ll get to build on this thing.”

The sport is still likely a few years away at least from becoming an officially sanctioned sport by the Kansas State High School Activities Association, according to several coaches and the activities directors. But with the success and size of the sport in the first year in Lawrence, there’s hope for the future.

“There are a bunch of middle school teams,” Preston said. “I go to a park next to my house sometimes, and there’s a bunch of middle school teams practicing, and those kids will be coming up next year. Next year, we will have experience, which will help.”

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

The Lawrence offense looks over a play design in the flag football triangular at Free State on Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State receiver Addie Fulscher dunks the football in quarterback Quinlyn Vail’s arms after a touchdown celebration during the first flag football game at Free State High School on September 3, 2025, in Lawrence.