Story Written By: Damon Cook / CHSAANow.com
On Saturday, Aug. 17, Northglenn High School hosted Thornton High School and the two teams took the field for CHSAA's first-ever sanctioned flag football game. Head Coach Lex Gutierrez and his group of trailblazing girls at Northglenn High School ultimately came away with CHSAA's first-ever girls flag football victory. For his contributions in the historic milestone, Gutierrez has been named the first-ever CHSAA Denver Broncos Flag Football Coach of the Week. Throughout the season, there will be 10 flag football coaches recognized and each will be honored at a 2024 Broncos home game.
After a promising start to the season, the growth and promise that Gutierrez has seen come out of flag football, is something he can hope to inspire on as large a scale as possible.
Jose (Lex) Gutierrez
Overall record at Northglenn: 1-0
*What was it like winning the first ever CHSAA sanctioned flag football game? *JG - At first, it was a little surreal. It was a big moment. I didn't know that it was the first-ever CHSAA game until the day before and my athletic director called me to let me know that we were going to make history. It was super motivating and motivating for the girls to have that experience of having the first-ever game. And, we were able to not just host it, but win it.
*How did you get into coaching flag football? *JG - I've played flag football for the last 13 years, and for the last five years I've coached and managed a traveling men's team for an eight-on-eight. We won a couple league titles and traveled to other states and played, and then one of my buddies that's on the team told me that they were looking for a coach at Northglenn to coach the girls high school team. He then got me in contact with the athletic director and we made it happen last year.
*What have you learned from coaching flag football? *JG - I just learned that it's a growing sport in every aspect of the game. We're going from different formats, to bigger stages, to more people wanting to come out and play. Just the buzz around flag football has grown so much over the last five years, it's been crazy.
*How have you seen flag football face the future generation of leaders? *JG - I've noticed it tremendously, aside from last year. Last year [during the pilot season], we didn't have a lot of involvement because the girls were just like — they didn't really want to leave their other sports they've played their whole life, to come and join a new sport in high school. But now that we have a couple of those girls that transitioned and made it, I think they've been enjoying it a lot more and it just helped grow and get to that level of volleyball and softball as well, where the numbers are starting to level out. This year we've had way more — I don't want to say more talented athletes, but we had more people that are just involved. Last year we had a lot of freshmen, this year we've got a variety of kids.
*What have the girls from other sports brought to flag football? *JG - A lot more athletic ability. A lot of these girls played volleyball, or softball their whole life, or basketball. And now they bring those skills to flag football. To running routes, catching, doing things that they're bringing from their other sports that they've played literally their whole life to coming out here. This is their second year and then their first game that they're playing. And they're starting to pick it up super, super easy and it's just fun to watch them get excited about understanding the concept of a route, or the concept of catching, or touchdowns. I had a girl say 'now I know why my dad liked this so much, because it's such a great sport.' So it's pretty funny to hear those comments.
*Have you had any of the parents say 'hey, thanks for teaching my daughter football?' *JG - Yeah, it's funny: my quarterback... her dad and her got to share a moment. He goes 'I never had a son, never was able to throw a football with him, but now I get to throw with my daughter.' It's something he was able to experience, it was pretty fun.
*What do you look forward to for the rest of the season? *JG - I just look forward to helping these girls grow, and helping some of these girls get to the next level. I'll have a couple girls that are getting some NCAA DI scholarships in other sports and I'm hoping to get them the same kind of opportunity not with just flag football, but whatever they need.
I'm also looking to continue to win games, continue to build a culture, continue to get the atmosphere to where it needs to be. To not just put flag football on the map for our school, but for Colorado in general.
*As more schools play flag football, how do you think that will impact the sport? *JG - I think it's tremendous for the sport. I think it kind of creates awareness and shows them and puts them on the biggest level. For example, on Disney Channel, you can watch girls flag football. On NFL and commercials, they're running flag football. And I think if they're doing that broadcasting, it will bring more awareness and get girls to actually watch football and see how flag football evolves. And they'll make them want to be more a part of it, as well.
*What are your team goals this season? *JG - Yeah, my goal is to develop these young ladies and try to get them to the next level or try to get them to whatever their goals are. If somebody's goal is to score a touchdown, or if somebody's goal is to catch the ball, my goal is to help them get the ball and get them to that level. For me and my coaching staff, we want to get the best of these girls on a daily basis and always help them achieve their goals, or whatever their goal is, it's our job to help them get to that.
*What do you think people should know about flag football? *JG - They don't need any experience. They can come out here, we'll teach them, we'll show them and we'll guide them into being the best we possibly can. I think a lot of people are scared because they've never played this sport, or they're unaware of how it goes, so that's why they're not coming out. So, I always tell them, no experience needed, just show up and we'll teach you how to play the game.
