Football. A simple game that has taken over the lives of Westfield High School students. Whether it’s Friday night lights against crosstown rival Scotch Plains-Fanwood or seven hours of commercial-free football on NFL Sundays, talk of football constantly buzzes through the halls of WHS. Although the sport has been a staple in American culture for years, there’s a new reason for Westfield students to get excited about it: flag football.
For the past few years, WHS seniors have organized a flag football league for anyone willing to pay the $30 dollar entrance fee. This money goes to several charities and pays for the equipment needed to play.
“We donate to the Special Olympics and we want to donate some of the money to a cancer foundation too,” said co-commissioner Kieran Ciarletta. This year the league is expected to raise just over $1500 dollars.
“I’ve always been a guy that supports charitable causes, especially when it’s something that goes to something like the Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund and the Special Olympics,” said senior Alex Ebel, Ciarletta’s partner.
In addition to raising a significant amount of money, the league offers a fun experience for all those involved. With over 100 registered members and 6 teams, players are bound to meet new people and make new friends.
“It’s a great way for the community to come together and promote a good cause while doing something we all love,” said Ebel.
Although the games are friendly, rivalries between teams develop very early in the season. Senior captain of the football team and flag football coach Chris Rossetti said, “I think the competitiveness makes everyone really want to come out on Sunday. Everyone’s really into it.”
Instead of another boring extracurricular activity, flag football is something that kids love to come to, offering a lot more than just something to add to a college application. Senior baseball pitcher Tomas Cestero said, “It’s a fun thing that you can do once a week and can look forward to.”
Along with competitive ties, strong player-coach bonds are formed. Coaches meet up to draft teams from the list of players registered at the start of each year. This year, six teams were formed and after the draft, the coaches vouched for their players and pleaded their cases for why their team was the best. “Pink team on top,” said Rossetti.
With no practices during the week, coaching is a simple and enjoyable task. “My role as a coach is to show up every Sunday and be there for my team so they can have a great time,” said Rossetti. “And so far, I think it’s a great thing. I think everyone really enjoys it.”
During games coaches get to showcase their extensive knowledge of the sport with elaborate gameplans to take down the opposition and earn that week’s bragging rights. Their love for the game is truly shown. “It’s a great opportunity to get out and play football on Sunday,” said Rossetti.
Flag football is not only fun for the experienced athletes, but it is also a great opportunity for someone who does not play a sport and wants to be active with their friends. Cestero said, “I think it’s a great thing for kids who love watching sports but haven’t played sports for the high school. It’s super competitive.”
Flag football is a sport loved by all Westfield students. Now both boys and girls have a flag football season.
This league could also spearhead a growing intramural sports program at Westfield. In college, many fraternities and dorms have intramural competitions where fantastic athletes get to show off their skills after they have retired competitively from their sport. Here, athletes such as Cestero get to play another sport in the offseason.
Rossetti thinks that more intramural programs can be created in Westfield. “I think [intramural sports] could definitely be something that could be put together. Obviously, for the flag season, I’m not allowed to play because I play football for the high school,” he said. He added that if there were intramurals in another athletic season, football players “could definitely take part in it.”
Also optimistic about intramural sports, Cestero believes that they can be successful especially because they are organized behind good causes. He said, “I think I think it could grow into more things; it wasn’t super hard to organize. And a lot of money is going to charity. I think a lot of teachers will get behind it and help with gym time and stuff like that if we want to do basketball or volleyball or something like that.”
The organization of more of these programs seems very feasible, and it starts with the zealous initiative of students like Ebel and Ciarletta.
