Seemingly out of nothing, flag football is the hottest sport in Illinois

Gustavo Silva saw girls succeed on the wrestling mat. He knew those triumphs could be replicated on the football field, and the former wrestling coach at Dundee-Crown High School found himself in an ideal job to transform that vision into reality.

Hired as the Chicago Bears’ manager of youth football and community programs in 2018, Silva approached his director about starting a girls flag football league. The NFL and Nike, one of the league’s sponsors, previously pledged support to the cause, and Silva wanted to focus the Bears’ effort on their home state. It was time to be proactive about the sport’s popularity.

“This is something that is growing globally,” Silva said. “This is something that’s going to be in the Olympics in 2028. This is something that’s starting to exist at the collegiate level.”

Growing the sport in Illinois would feature multiple challenges, ranging from school participation to coach and referee hirings. The COVID-19 pandemic caused an early setback, postponing a planned 2020 start until the following year. Silva said the Bears’ objective revolved around equity, wanting to provide opportunity for the more disadvantaged. The mission started with 22 Chicago public school teams.

“We started there because we knew it was needed there most,” Silva said. “We wanted to do it there in the city of Chicago, but we also knew that we would prove the model within Chicago. We can make this work in Chicago, make it grow so big and have so much success that it’s going to work in your community.”

Silva’s words proved prophetic. Rockford and the West Suburban Conference joined the following years and by 2023, over 100 teams united under the umbrella. When the IHSA held its legislative commission that year, it couldn’t ignore this exponential growth, one that would clear its 10% participation threshold for sanctioning.

On Feb. 14, 2024, girls flag football officially became an IHSA sport, and beginning its second season of play this fall, has quickly evolved but remains steadfast in its goal of expanding opportunity. Illinois, the ninth state to sanction the sport, boasts over 200 participating schools for 2025.

“It was one of the sports that went through the (sanction) process the fastest,” IHSA Assistant Executive Director and girls flag football administrator Tracie Henry said. “But I also think it’s a sport that doesn’t require an extreme amount of infrastructure.”

Overcoming challenges

Compared to the tackle variety, flag football requires far less equipment. The IHSA emphasizes flag as a non-contact sport and doesn’t require players to wear a helmet or other padding, only a mouth guard. Henry said almost any practice field is useful, so long as yardage and boundary lines are painted on. But given the financial disparity between schools, eliminating barriers was a top priority.

Silva explained that every school that asked for help received at least $2,500 in donations, with lower-income schools sometimes receiving more, such as cleats and uniforms. Nevertheless, a team isn’t fully equipped without a coach. The Bears have hosted an annual coaching clinic since 2021 and held two this year.

As with any high school sport, officials are difficult to come by. Henry said the IHSA has encouraged participation in its annual officials conference and hosted in-person and virtual training.

“We knew there would be crossover with the game of tackle, but also differentiating those rules with our existing officials and helping them understand that it’s a different game than tackle,” Henry said. “Educating officials and making sure that there was that support there to officiate the games fairly and consistently.”

This year’s education process will involve learning a new rulebook. Last season, IHSA teams adopted the rules CPS used, but this year will operate under guidelines from the National Federation of High School Associations.

Alterations include contests divided into quarters instead of halves, with additional clock stoppages to make the game slightly longer. Last season, offenses had to abide by “no run zones,” wherein a team could only throw the ball when within 5 yards of the end zone or the first-down marker.

As a balancing measure, a defender can start 1 yard off the line of scrimmage, rather than a minimum of 7 from last year. Players can rush the passer as soon as the ball is snapped. Blocking is still a little ambiguous, with players allowed to move laterally but not pivot, lean or otherwise initiate contact.

Adding opportunity

Stevenson High School coach Sarah Gutierrez will navigate these changes, but she is no stranger to learning on the fly. After retiring from her decade-long tenure as the field hockey coach, Gutierrez saw an article in 2021 about CPS teams starting play and asked then-athletic director Trish Betthauser about starting a team.

“She was, like, ‘Getting new sports around here is pretty tough,’” Gutierrez recalled. “‘There’s a lot of competition. It’s got to go through a lot of things and interest from the kids. So I’ll keep it in mind, but we’ll see.’”

With advocates such as teacher Pat Block and senior golfer Sophia Joeng generating interest for the sport, Stevenson began play in 2023 with Gutierrez and Kelsey Manning tabbed as co-head coaches. Armed with packages of gear from USA Football and the Bears, the pair held three practices a week with games on Saturdays. The duo didn’t want to cut anyone, so they hosted a “shadow JV team” that participated in practice and played intramurals.

Gutierrez lacked experience in coaching football but received drill recommendations from Stevenson tackle football coach Brent Becker and added an offensive coordinator in Stevenson teacher Paul Mazzuca. That inaugural campaign, the Patriots advanced to the postseason and were among the final eight teams in the bracket, playing inside the Walter Payton Center at the Bears’ training facility in Lake Forest.

“It was so fly by the seat of our pants,” Gutierrez said. “It was like learning from a fire hose, all the cliche stuff, but that was so true. Then we got to the end and we’re, like, ‘Oh my god, what just happened?’”

After a “sophomore slump” in 2024, Stevenson is back this autumn with a varsity and two official JV teams. Gutierrez said seven of the eight schools in the Patriots’ North Suburban Conference field at least one team, with Mundelein and Libertyville also having three squads each.

Silva is proud to say that every school that’s added a team has kept it running. This year, eight Illinois colleges feature a team, with nationwide numbers approaching 100. Much like Silva, Gutierrez has witnessed girls carving out a place in a traditionally male-dominated sport. The head coach of the Stevenson girls lacrosse team for 14 years, she watched that sport grow in popularity and gain an IHSA sanction in 2018. The difference with flag football is that it creates a more level playing field.

“Lacrosse is expensive, and it creates such a gap in physical ability and level to be a competitive team … There’s the best of the best and then everybody else,” Gutierrez said. “And if you’re an athlete who’s never played another sport, you could be crushing flag football within a week. It’s just so cool, there’s nothing like it.”

Gustavo Silva, manager of youth and high school football for the Chicago Bears, greets athletes as the Chicago Bears and McHenry Community High School hosted a flag football clinic at McCracken Field Wednesday, July 31, 2024.
Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local/Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local