Penn Hills flag football teams learn lessons on road to nationals

By: Josh Rizzo
Saturday, July 8, 2023 | 8:01 AM

The Penn Hills Youth Football and Cheer Association football program is happy to have several flag football teams headed to nationals.

What Larry Fielder, who coaches the 10U team that recently won the NFL Flag Pittsburgh Steelers Regional Tournament regional competition and will represent the Steelers at the Pro Bowl in Las Vegas in 2024, has found is a deeper pool of competition presents his team with a new perspective on where they are as a program.

While Fielder’s teams have excelled in local competitions, they received some valuable experience this spring when they traveled to Maryland for a competition and to the Philadelphia area for the Beast of the East tournament.

“It’s crazy,” Fielder said. “When we went to Maryland, we were very competitive. I didn’t know the Beast of the East is one of the biggest flag football events. We didn’t win a single game there. It was frustrating and it was tough. I was proud of how the kids continued to play and didn’t give up.”

The Penn Hills Youth Football and Cheer Association 8U team will also be going to nationals. Fielder said that 95% of the 175 kids in the organization are from Penn Hills, but that they also have a few other athletes from other communities involved as well.

Fielder said that the program is focused on trying to build life skills as well as teaching the game of flag football.

“One of the things we teach is integrity,” Fielder said. “We want out kids doing what’s right when no one is looking. We want to see them have resilience, effort and a good attitude. We always say that attitude determines altitude and how far you can go in life.”

The NFL Flag program is a 5-on-5 version of the sport. Each team can have a roster of up to 10 players and can have a maximum of two coaches. The NFL competition features a number of different divisions, including one for coed, girls and recreation.

There were 23 tournaments where teams could qualify to go to the national tournament at the Pro Bowl.

Fielder, who also coaches tackle football, believes athletes who also play flag develop other skills that will help them down the line.

“I wasn’t interested in flag football until I started coaching it,” Fielder said. “Everyone is big on 7-on-7s and I think it’s harder to catch someone in flag than in 7-on-7s. You have to use hand-eye coordination to break someone down and grab the flag.”

Getting a chance to go and challenge other top teams from around the country is something that will benefit the program down the line.

“I want them to give 110% in everything they do,” Fielder said. “We want that lion attitude. We want to go out and work hard every day.”

Tags: Penn Hills