DENVER — Girls flag football may be entering its first fall season as an officially sanctioned high school sport, but the work is far from over.
Following a three-year pilot program supported by the Broncos and Denver Broncos Foundation, the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) voted to officially sanction the sport in April, making Colorado the 11th state in the U.S. to do so.
And now, as the first sanctioned fall season is set to begin, the Broncos are committed to setting Colorado coaches and athletes up for success. On Thursday, the Broncos hosted 70 Colorado high school coaches for an educational workshop that focused on game fundamentals and provided tools for success heading into 2024.
The event was led by Bobby Mestas, the Broncos' director of youth and high school football, and Angellica Grayson, NFL Flag Football Ambassador for RCX Sports.
"Bobby keeps doing a great job to grow the sport," said Legend High School coach Darren Pitzner, who participated in the event."[He did] so much work last year getting girls to play, and now he's putting in the work to help educate coaches, which is huge. It's going to drive the quality of flag football up in Colorado, which is awesome."
Grayson, a former player and current coach, brought a wealth of experience and expertise to the event. Grayson has competed as a member of Team USA and won a gold medal in women's tackle football in 2017. Her success as a linebacker ultimately led to her induction into the Women's Football Hall of Fame. Following her competitive career, Grayson became the first head coach of flag football at the University of Saint Mary and also served as the U.S. Nationals Junior Flag Football 17U assistant coach in 2024.
Grayson introduced participants of Thursday's event to FirstDown PlayBook, a software that serves as an educational tool for both new and experienced coaches and players. Grayson also walked coaches through various drill demonstrations and provided advice on how to integrate them into practices.
"Angellica is an amazing treasure of women's tackle football," said Madison O'Connor, former Mile High Blaze women's tackle team player and current coach at Legend High School. "Her [being] here getting to work with people who maybe know everything about the sport, or nothing about the sport … it was awesome."
The event, which brought together both new and experienced coaches, allowed participants to share ideas with one another as the sport enters a new phase of competition this year. The event also featured a discussion about athlete nutrition led by sport dietician and exercise physiologist Bob Seebohar.
"Even those of us who have been here since the beginning, it's still a new sport and [there are] new rules this year and different competition," said Denver West coach Erica Vannest, who attended the event for the third consecutive year. "It's nice to get new ideas from other people. … It's just a great refresher. There's no resources like in-person resources."
As flag football continues to grow and evolve in Colorado, coaches believe that the continuous support and resources provided by the Broncos will fuel them and their athletes to success.
"It's just been really great to see the evolution throughout the three years and see even more coaches here year after year," Vannest said. "… The Broncos give us resources and just to see that change year after year to be more specialized with what we need and to be more specific to what our girls need is huge."
And as coaches look forward to watching the sport build momentum across the country, they are grateful for the opportunity to set the standard and play a role in driving the sport to reach new heights.
"Had we not had the Broncos backing [the sport], I think the state would have lagged instead of lead in terms of leadership for opportunities for girls," Pitzner said. "… It's fun, as a guy who's played the sport since I was four years old, I get to coach this passion of mine to girls and teach them how awesome the game is and how much it can build their confidence and self-esteem. It's an opportunity I would never have had [if] the Broncos and Bobby [had] not led the way in getting it started."
