A Letter From
The Director:
As we wrap up our fourth season, I reflect on the days when STRIKE was in its infancy. A time when we were a lone figure in the space hosting free camps to generate interest that trickled slowly, to being three years in existence, and a year and a half into league games. The ground beneath our feet is rapidly changing in the city and within the organization. Parents who have been with us for a couple of seasons, as well as brand new parents, have been asking similar questions about topics that are bubbling beneath the surface. As the League Director, I feel it's important to be the face to promote our brand when necessary, especially as I work to recruit new athletes. However, within our organization, I typically prefer to stay behind the scenes when it comes to STRIKE LEAGUE. I don’t seek recognition for myself; instead, I believe it’s more beneficial for our athletes to share their stories, creating a complete narrative of STRIKE whenever possible.
Now, I’m at a point where I feel comfortable sharing my thoughts on these topics for the first time. While I've been open in face-to-face conversations, I want to reach out to those of you who may not know me well or haven’t had the chance to discuss certain issues with me in depth.
Perhaps this could be a recurring thing? Or a one-time deal. Who knows.
VISION
STRIKE LEAGUE Girls Flag Football is an internal thought exercise that answers the questions: if I could re-imagine football for my own daughters, what would that look like? How can you take the best parts of football and leave behind the parts of the toxic, machismo ideologies that don't serve young girls? How can I foster a healthy relationship amongst the athlete, her parents, and the sport, that doesn't demand an arm and a leg in both time and money, while also promoting retention?
While we have been diligently refining our process since our inception through trial and error, I have concluded that our solution currently consists of three key components:
1) We solicit help from men and women who know the game and how to best deliver its concepts in a way that is palpable to young girls. Over time, we will form a rotating group of dedicated adults who understand brand values and prioritize the athlete's experience first. Coaches who can help develop the basic prerequisite skills required to play proficiently in any scheme and on any team.
2) We center the athlete in our branding. We give them a chance to narrate their own journey. In doing so, it creates a sense of ownership and pride, while encouraging her peers watching from their phones that if their friend/classmate can do it, they can do it, too.
3) We take off winter and encourage athletes to play in two-thirds (at the most) of our yearly offering. We want to coexist alongside her original sport (although it feels great when I hear that flag is an athlete's new favorite). We hope that this space given will increase her desire to return to STRIKE's seasonal offerings with an eager mindset and a healthy body.
The goal is to create a league that fosters brand enthusiasm organically, rather than enforcing loyalty through contractual obligations. We aim to offer an all-encompassing community that focuses on the whole and provides extended opportunities to those who can play on an elevated level. An environment where every adult on the sideline and official on the field is in service to the girls, no matter the jersey color. We aim to maintain the purity of youth sports while minimizing the harmful factors that could contribute to burnout.
“How can you take the best parts of football and leave behind the parts of the toxic, machismo ideologies that don't serve young girls?”
SPONSORSHIPS
We have several extras that we utilize to expand the brand in areas where we believe our athletes are passionate, and we place a premium on crafting the brand message through video and still imagery by hiring local creatives who are the best at what they do. I believe this is a vital tool to sell the brand to young female athletes and their parents alike.
Currently, STRIKE LEAGUE operates independently, without any corporate affiliation. We are currently funding 100% of league expenses through registration fees and gate earnings. We use these funds to cover creative costs, officiating fees, field rentals, web hosting, domain name, email system, and more.
No successful sports league can thrive without corporate sponsorship, and STRIKE is no exception. While we do require financial support, I don't want to pressure parents into making individual team sponsorships mandatory. I also don't want to turn our uniforms and website into something akin to NASCAR, where every inch is covered in advertisements and serves as a walking billboard. Instead, I hope to pursue the club soccer route, where we can secure major support from banking institutions, car dealerships, roofing companies, a prominent local corporation (etc, etc) through 2-3 sponsorship openings on two-year contracts. In exchange, we will offer uniform patches, social media recognition, and mentions in parent emails. Additionally, sponsors will receive visibility on our website, physical presence on game days, and several other tiered options.
Introducing sponsors can help us secure venues with the best field surfaces and enhance the game-day experience for both players and fans. Those funds can help expedite gate collections, make merchandise more readily available, and strengthen our advertising efforts to grow the league. Additionally, these potential funds can be directed toward acquiring a site supervisor (which can allow game days to run in my absence during emergencies or vacations) and possibly security personnel on game days.
If you know someone who can appreciate the growth of the sport and the leading organization in our city, or if you are a benefactor seeking a meaningful cause to support, please reach out to me. I would love to discuss this opportunity in more detail!
TRAVEL vs LEAGUE PLAY
At the close of Season Two, Spring 2025 session, a handful of our coaches got together to discuss the possibility of assembling some of our top talent to participate in the inaugural 2025 5v5 SuperFlag Invitational in Fort Worth, Texas, over Labor Day weekend. This was my first-ever encounter with travel youth sports of any kind. I didn't know what to expect or what was waiting for us when we got there. Winning the tournament was the furthest thing from my mind; I wanted to know how we fared against international competition outside of our little OKC enclave we created. Are we competitive and trending in the right direction? Can we hang with the big dogs? Might we make a name for ourselves? What we quickly realized is that we chose one of the top tournaments in the nation to debut our experience.
We took two teams. A 14U and a 12U. The 14U team won a couple of games, beginning with a light schedule, while the 12U team had a tough break with a matchup against the #1 team in the tournament right from the start, coupled with multiple Mexican teams (Mexico takes flag football VERY seriously). Each game that followed showed significant improvement compared to the previous one. Overall, I would say we did pretty well after less than a year of league play. We were on the right track organizationally.
One of the key lessons I learned from that experience is that even among our top elite athletes, there seemed to be a lack of "football IQ." This deficiency could have helped them in critical, split-second moments during tournament play. Football IQ involves traits such as recognizing a blitz pre-snap and immediately knowing how soon to get rid of the ball, breaking on a ball as a defender when it's in the air (vs allowing the receiver to catch the ball before pulling her flag), situational awareness on down and distance, not staring down the QB
This isn't their fault. They live in a society where this sport has mostly excluded their participation for the past 100 years. Football IQ comes with a lifetime of free play in the park/recess, watching football on TV, and/or Madden video games. Until our girls adopt those methods on their own, the next best thing they can use to grow their IQ is live game repetitions. You can train the athlete to become a better player, or go over concepts on the dry-erase board until they’re blue in the face, but nothing replaces live game reps versus an opponent trying to stop you.
Since SuperFlag, the dynamics of the league have changed. After observing the "Flag Machine" at full tilt, the possibilities became endless, and timelines were expedited. Independent travel teams, both emerging from within and existing outside of STRIKE, recruited STRIKE athletes to re-engage with the travel circuit as stronger units. My initial thought was to enhance our skills in league play and keep a pool of athletes ready for a major travel tournament every quarter, but those ideas may be outdated and in need of revising.
I see the positives in SuperFlag. It’s intense and diverse. Athletes are exposed to superior strategies and skillsets. I also see the less-than-desirable traits of travel flag; it can be a cash grab. The field dimensions are smaller, and the game clock is shorter to fit in more games. They are eager to rush you off the field as soon as you set foot on it. The college coaches/USA Football talent scouts who are advertised to be in attendance are nowhere to be seen (and if they are, they're not there for a 13-year-old).
I believe that travel play can be beneficial in moderation. I would like to return to high-level, out-of-state tournaments. However, when the focus shifts primarily to travel play, it may negatively impact our girls' long-term development and growth as players, especially when they are new to the sport and thrown directly into the fire. While travel is an option for experienced flag players, STRIKE is for every athlete, regardless of experience. We aim to attract as many athletes as possible, help them adjust to the sport, grow their confidence/acumen, and give those with great potential the chance to compete in tournaments across state lines. As it pertains to travel play in itself, I believe we are currently behind as both athletes and coaches due to our late entry into the sport. At this moment in time, there is no Oklahoma-based team or organization that can compete in a SuperFlag-caliber tournament and win the top prize. I’m not saying it’s impossible; it’s just not our time yet. The sport is too new, and the number of athletes actively participating in this state is quite low. We are skimming the top of the known collective of athletes, when there are several thousand stones to turn over. Simply identifying and stockpiling local talent who show promise will not help us bypass the progress that teams in Mexico, Texas, and Kansas have made over several years. Developing players and fostering team on-field chemistry requires genuine effort and patience. I believe this process cannot be skipped!
As league director, I will naturally prioritize STRIKE over any other tournament. As a coach, I believe the best way for girls to develop their football IQ is by playing games, especially if they are unlikely to engage in free play or watch games on TV during the weekend. Participating in fourteen games in seven weeks with one or two practices per week (a healthy practice-to-game ratio) provides a better chance of long-term growth compared to a four-game series during a holiday weekend that costs over a thousand dollars. Ultimately, this is fun for the kids, and putting more weight in travel runs the risk of making flag football an obligation. Could they enjoy the sport and develop a passion before we raise the stakes for them?
“The sport is too new, and the number of athletes actively participating in this state is quite low. We are skimming the top of the known collective of athletes, when there are several thousand stones to turn over.”
THE FUTURE
"Written goals have a way of transforming wishes into wants; can't into cans; dreams into plans; and plans into reality." —Michael Korda (English writer)
We are opening the league to high school athletes in the summer. All middle school girls, current ninth-graders who just finished fall ball, and girls who aged out since season one will be eligible to play in the high school league over the summer.
College flag football is experiencing tremendous growth. Many new head coaches are seeking turn-key senior athletes to help establish their programs. We are currently focusing on building relationships with these coaches in the Midwest region to provide them with direct access to the best talent in the OKC metro area as our girls explore post-high school opportunities.
Our goal, with the continued support of multiple sponsors, is to provide live video access to every game we offer. This will allow players' loved ones to watch from afar, group film study could be available (which can significantly improve the previously mentioned football IQ), and footage could assist in individual recruiting purposes.
Down the line, also with continued support from our sponsors, acquiring a vehicle similar to a Sprinter van—such as a Ford Transit or a Dodge ProMaster—will assist us in housing and transporting equipment for game days, offseason training, and camps. As our numbers grow, three-row SUVs are becoming too small to accommodate all of our equipment transport needs.
We will host STRIKE signing days for our athletes to sign letters of intent for colleges, with their immediate family and close friends in attendance.
Best possible 10-year outcome: we are thriving and fortunate enough to break ground on our own facility, complete with restrooms, Bermuda grass, stadium lighting, and ample parking.
IN CONCLUSION
If you've made it this far, I appreciate your patience as I type my thoughts on this page. I am not going to sugarcoat it; we need sponsor help. We need to maintain a safe and enjoyable environment for our athletes, and corporate sponsors will assist in achieving that goal. I've also realized that my preference for resolving issues privately is often misconstrued as a lack of willingness to cooperate or as an indication that the league may lack direction. I hope this long-form letter provides clarity on our intent and future.
Questions, comments, sponsorship inquiries? Contact me.
Thank you, and have a great winter offseason!
Ben Ezugha
Owner | League Director
