Flag Star McLean - Spring 2024
Home Sweet Home
This Spring, we’re doing what we do best:
Getting Better
Having Fun
Including Everyone
For eight years now, this has been a wonderfully positive league; it’s community at its best. And we love each other (referees included!)
Welcome to that team. Or welcome back to that team. Let’s go be great.
Spring 2024 — The Quick Hitters
WHERE: Local McLean Fields
WHO: K-12th Graders, Boys & Girls
WHEN: Sundays only; April 7th - June 2nd (Rain Date 6/9); K-1: April 7th - May 12th
(K-1st: 6 Weeks; 2nd-12th: 8 Weeks)
*We will be OFF on 5/26 for Memorial Day
PROPOSED SCHEDULE**:
K-1st: 12:00-1:00pm OR 1:00-2:00pm
2nd Graders: 2:00-3:30pm
3rd Graders: 2:00-3:30pm OR 3:30-5:00pm
4th Graders: 3:30-5:00pm
5th Graders: 5:00-6:30pm
6th Graders: 11:00am-12:30pm
7th Graders: 12:30-2:00pm
“JV” (8th-9th): 6:30-8:00pm
“Varsity” (10th-12th): 6:30-8:00pm
COST: K-1st: $185 | 2nd-12th Parent-Coached: $205 | 2nd-12th Pro-Coached: $295
**PLEASE KEEP IN MIND: We're in the midst of working out field permits. These times are our best guess, but may be adjusted based off field schedules. If we ever create a conflict with your schedule, we'll either a) fix it or b) refund ya.**
“Great sport, great people, great energy!””
Are you also looking for…?
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
*E-mail Carl (Carl@flagstarfootball.com) with any other questions
Can I register an entire team?
Yes. We’d prefer that. If you have a group of players you’d like to register, e-mail us directly (carl@flagstarfootball.com) and we’ll create a personalized registration page for your crew!
Even if you only have 4-5 kids, drop us a line. Creating your own registration page helps make sure we place you all together!
But I don’t have an entire team! Can I still register to play?
Most likely, yes. In our first season, priority placement goes to pre-formed teams, but we do accept “free-agents”: players who register by themselves or with small groups of friends.
When you register, list your friends names or indicate your “free-agent” status under “team preference.” We’ll place you all together and work hard to find you a team
Is Flag Star McLean the same as McLean Youth Flag Football?
Yes. We're just going by a different name now. What started as "McLean Youth Flag Football" is still the same league (and filed under the same 501c3), but we call everything "Flag Star" now. It makes it easier to register everyone. And to make bulk jersey/t-shirt/sweatshirt orders.
When do the boys (and girls!) practice?
Practice time is built into our Sunday schedule. For the 2nd-7th graders, there’s a half hour practice window before the game begins. This half-hour gives coaches the chance to run drills, draw-up plays and put them immediately into play. K-1 is a little different (see below).
We’ve used this format for years now. It’s by far the most effective use of players’ time (and attention spans!).
Isn’t K-1st Grade a little young for flag football?
No way! Our K-1 divisions end up being the most fun. They’re a mad-house, but we have plenty of coaches, referees and volunteers to keep the program on track.
Their hour-long sessions will be divided between drills, stations and games. In the first couple weeks, we’ll take a little bit longer with the drills and play relatively shorter games.
As the season goes on and the teams learn the structure, we’ll cut back on practice time and extend the game times to ~30-40 minutes.
What if our state/city says we can’t play games anymore?
This program is UNCANCELLABLE. If that happens, we will use our staff and field space to turn each team into a self contained pod to have practice and play more socially distanced games. Our kids need to play sports this fall and we are going to do everything possible to keep them (safely) in action.
My son isn’t the best athlete and he’s never played flag football. Will he be left behind?
Absolutely not. Bring us your outgoing and your shy. Your great athletes and your children with two left-feet. Flag Star Football welcomes all kids who want to participate!
Our league is designed for every level of experience and every level of athleticism. A good portion of our players are football-fanatics, but just as many are first-time players. They’re kids who haven’t shown interest in sports and need something to get them out of the house. All are welcome.
Should I choose the parent or professionally coached team?
That’s entirely up to you. Both are great. The majority of parent-coach registrants have a specific parent in mind, so they know who’ll be coaching their team. If you want the parent-coached option but don’t have a team, we’ll try to place you on a roster when registration closes.
Pro-coaches are people we hire and train. They’re usually in their mid-to-late twenties, former athletes, and passionate about sharing their love for the game.
Neither option is better or worse. We monitor our pro-coaches a little bit more closely, but you can expect all coaches to bring positive, constructive energy to the field each week.
Where exactly will you play?
We are, as always, fighting for field space. Sometimes we don't know our field assignments until weeks before the season.
We do make this promise, though: if you register and end up unhappy with the field location, you can withdrawal from the league with a full refund. We don’t anticipate fields being a problem.
The Next Game Project/Flag Star Football are proud sponsors of the Flag Star Football Foundation, working to provide all young athletes with the opportunity to play, learn and grow.