Butte Flag Football Jamboree Update

Saturday afternoon Butte High, Kalispell Flathead, and Kalispell Glacier girls held the first ever Montana High School Flag football Jamboree.

The day was all about learning girls Flag Football with Athletes, Coaches and  Officials getting their first opportunity to experience the new sport.  Naranche stadium was cut into two 40 yard by 40 yard fields so varsity and junior varsity players could get as much experience as possible in the single day event.  The official field is 40 yards by 80 yards and probably won’t be used until later in the program’s development to allow more athletes to gain experience.

Butte High coach Eric Zahler was excited about what he saw on the field, “I saw so many smiles on all the girls’ faces as they enjoyed the experience and the opportunity to be a part of history.” he added, “The day was not about competition, but focused on learning the game and figuring out how everything is going to work.”

Girls Flag Football is not a sanctioned High School sport in Montana and is currently using rules from Georgia where the sport is sanctioned.  Zahler explained, “This season is about developing the sport, in Montana, with a strong foundation and not focusing on wins and losses.  As the season progresses, we will start keeping score, but for now it’s all about learning the game and enjoying the experience.”

The three programs will play a six-week, round robin schedule that will conclude with a championship game on Oct. 1 at Washington-Grizzly Stadium. Even the structure of the Championship day is still being worked out but according to coach Zahler, may include some sort of Round Robin tournament.

Next Saturday the three schools will meet again in Kalispell for another Jamboree event.  Once again, no stats will be kept and no scores will be listed, as the real winners will be the future generations of Montana girls who will benefit from the strong foundation developed by Butte High, Kalispell Glacier and Kalispell Flathead.

Team rosters are not available as many of the girls are competing in other fall sports and may not be available from week to week due to schedule conflicts.

One thing is for sure, Coach Zahler is excited for the future of Girls Flag football in Montana, ” I am stoked for the opportunity these young ladies have to play football.  We don’t care who wins or loses, just that the opportunity is now available to them.”