BY SIENNA WEISS ’30
The softball diamonds are dusty and lacrosse fields empty as flag football has taken over not just Jericho High School but also Long Island. Jericho’s Girls Varsity Flag Football Team just completed their second season, a celebration for the program, but is it at the expense of other spring sports teams?
Flag football did not start as a varsity school sport. Across Long Island, athletes of all ages participated in the Long Island Flag Football League. Jericho adopted the program back in 2022, when former Athletic Director Mr. John Mankowich had the idea of fielding a team. Parents and Students in the district pushed for flag football as a spring sport option because many other schools in the country were doing it. Jericho was so committed to the idea that Head Coach Peter O’Malley sacrificed his middle school baseball coaching position in preparation for the Jayhawks’ first flag football season. The fall before their first season, an interest meeting was held, and then the off-season workouts began. These winter workouts helped students familiarize themselves with flag football to decide whether they wanted to commit to the team.
Once the first flag season started in Spring of 2025, the sport blew up. “To say [flag] has ‘blown up’ is an understatement,” said Jericho’s Varsity Flag Football Assistant Coach Allison D’Antonio. “The rise [of flag] has been amazing to witness. Specifically here, we have seen students who may have never considered playing a sport feeling confident to come out and try something new because it’s a new sport to many of our athletes,” said D’Antonio. Some might wonder how flag football has managed to rapidly gain such interest. According to Coach D’Antonio, flag football is appealing because “it is really accessible.” Coach D’Antonio said that flag football is “fast-paced, competitive, and there’s a role for everyone. It’s not too difficult to understand, despite some of the plays you may have to remember, and overall, it’s just a lot of fun, and dare I say, addicting!” Flag is also all about teamwork and quick decision-making, making it a sport that builds character in a fun way.
While flag football clearly has its appeal and advantages, other spring sports noticed that once flag was added to the Spring Sports roster, it became harder to field teams in previously popular sports. Varsity Lacrosse Assistant Coach Alana Mercante said, “Flag football has definitely made it challenging for us to retain lacrosse players in the spring.” Lacrosse wasn’t the only team to notice fewer players on the field due to flag football. Softball also experienced lower interest and difficulty in fielding a roster since the emergence of flag football. There are, however, some perks to flag football’s popularity, especially for players of other sports. Jericho lacrosse player Chloe D. ’28 made the choice to stick with lacrosse because of flag football’s popularity, as flag’s popularity made it easier for her to get playing time. “I stuck with lacrosse because I felt that if I joined the flag football team I would not see the field,” said Chloe. Chloe also said that in the face of the large number of girls on the flag team, lacrosse provided peace. “Lacrosse was a calmer environment for me,” said Chloe.
It’s clear that flag football has taken Long Island by storm. Jericho is just one of the many towns that have been overpowered by flag football. Is this just another trend, or will it stick? Only future seasons will tell.
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