The rumors are finally coming true: North Atlanta is introducing a flag football team. After a failed potential start in 2020, a girls’ flag football team is kicking off at last. Seeing as Powderpuff has become increasingly popular among the Dubs, Athletic Director Andre Regan decided to form a team that lasts longer than the two weeks of Powderpuff practice.

Although the idea is still in the early stages of production, progress has been made to form a new competitive team. The sport will be carried out from October to December. As the flag football team will be a GHSA varsity sport, tryouts will be held and 21 girls will be allowed on the team. Coach Ricky Plante, who is assisting in planning out the new team, has stated that the logistics are not yet definite. “We know that games will be held at North Atlanta and other schools, but there isn’t an overwhelming amount of information to be given yet,” he said. 

At North Atlanta, space is also an issue, as there are limited fields to practice on. The other sports teams and their practice schedules must be considered, seeing as the practice fields are typically occupied by other teams having practices or games. Practices would need to be held at the school, which would require planning out a schedule around other sports events. “It’s difficult to figure out the scheduling for practices and games, as there aren’t many opportunities for a new team to have access to the fields,” Plante said.

As with any extracurricular activity, funding is also a concern. North Atlanta has a plethora of sports teams and clubs, which all require financial help in some form. For the flag football team to progress, this is something that must be sorted out. In previous years, there was talk of growing the program, as GHSA was going to sponsor the team. This would allow it to reach the high stature of the other varsity teams at North Atlanta. “Just like every sport, funding needs to be sorted out,” Regan said. “We are eager to try again this year and see if the team can actually progress.” 

With interest meetings and tryouts being scheduled, there is hope that this year the team will be instituted. Although there are a few remaining concerns that need to be addressed, Plante and Regan are confident that 2022 is finally the year that North Atlanta’s flag football team will kick off.