photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State sophomore Layla Hafoka runs through flag pulls in a game against Shawnee Mission West on Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026, in Lawrence. The Vikings are the first of four teams the Firebirds face this week as Free State enters the meat of its schedule. The later games this week will be Free State's first time on the road this year at De Soto on Thursday and at Olathe South and Olathe North in a Saturday doubleheader at the Olathe District Activity Center.

Free State flag football entered the year on a high from a playoff run last season with returning talent to be one of the top rosters in the state. A blowout 48-0 win over Shawnee Mission East in the first game of the season only added to that hype.

Wednesday gave the Firebirds their first loss of the season, a 32-26 thriller to Shawnee Mission West. Teams never want to learn lessons from losses, but Free State coach Adam Barmann believes there’s a lot for the Firebirds to take away from facing adversity.

“One game is not going to make or break your season, whether we won that game or not,” Barmann said. “But that was a playoff-type atmosphere. That’s a really good football team over there with a lot of really good football players. And we knew that coming in. They made a few more plays than we did at the end of the game, and that’s football.”

Barmann characterized Wednesday night’s mistakes as unusual for the team. Turnovers haunted the offense at times when the Firebirds needed to sustain drives or score points, and the defense allowed several deep passing plays that resulted in touchdowns.

The game brought an intensity that the Firebirds hadn’t seen yet this season, but it’s something they will have to get used to in order to compete deep in the playoffs.

“It’s good to see good competition like that early in the year,” Barmann said. “It’s going to get you ready. That’s why you play in the Sunflower League. It’s the best league in the state, and it’s going to serve us well once playoff time hits, if we are fortunate enough to get to that point.”

The good news for the Firebirds is that by Saturday night, the team will have played three games after the Shawnee Mission West loss. Nothing beats getting over a disappointing loss like getting back on the field and winning as a team, and the Firebirds have ample opportunities to do so.

“This is kind of the grueling part of our schedule,” Barmann said. “It is good to flush a loss like this because typically in football, you have to sit and stew on that for a week. It’ll be good to get right back at it and get out there and play with max effort like we do. Our kids will be ready.”

Free State also has nine seniors on the roster who are either experienced in flag football from last year or in varsity competition with other sports at Free State. Barmann doesn’t have any concerns about the group having the mental fortitude to bounce back after a loss.

“It’s one of those things where you pick yourself up off the mat,” Barmann said. “And that’s football. You live to fight another day, and the sun will come up.”

Barmann emphasized taking each game as an opportunity. There are only 10 games on the schedule for Free State flag football, and the Firebirds will only have five games left on the schedule after Saturday, including a City Showdown against Lawrence at an unscheduled future date. There’s opportunities for the Firebirds to take the lessons from the early adversity and continue on for the special season they are working toward.

“Every game is a huge opportunity, is what we talk about,” Barmann said. “You only get so many, especially seniors, where this is your last go around. Every game is important, and we treat it that way.”