By Clif Knight

Hartselle Enquirer

Steelers: Grayson Vines, Brayden Dickson, Brennan Swafford, Rowan Blackwood, Peyton Mixon and Brayden Barber with their coach Houston Blackwood and league commissioner Mike Swafford.

Chiefs: Tripp Gill, Logan Merritt, Aiden Baker, Landon Russell, Sawyer Jeffery and Aiden Hogan with their coach Chuck Gill.

49ers: Carson Thompson, Jeremiah Smith, Jacob May, William Richie, Rylan Cooper, John Wesley Motes and Mason Guest with their coach Richard Richie.

Titans: Kingston Battles, Keaton Patel, Jackson Chesser, Jewlian Smith, Aiden Pointer, Owen Merritt and Jacob Weeks with their coach Beau Battles.

Buccaneers: Rowan Donahoo, Grayson Brightwell, Easton Smith, Kamden Hill, Aaron Berryman and Tyler Whitely with their coach Josh Smith.

Vikings: Caleb Myers, Noah Prater, Brock Meares, Kellar Richey, Levi Patterson, Christian Hignight and Wayne Horton with their coach Mike Silver.

Hartselle boys and girls ages 5-13 will have the opportunity to participate in flag football again this fall.

Hartselle Flag Football, an affiliate of NFL Play 60, was launched March 2017 under the leadership of co-organizers Chuck Gill and Mike Swafford.

“The new league was a great success,” said Gill, who also coached one of the league’s seven teams. “The kids had a lot of fun competing and learning the rules of the game, and the stands were filled with fans at every game.”

Games were played on the football field at the Grady and Margie Long Softball Complex.

Gill said player signup for the fall league will be conducted on the Hartselle Football League Facebook page or at Sparkman Civic Center beginning later this month or early June.

“Based on the interest that has already been shown by kids and their parents, we’re expecting a bigger signup and bigger crowds at the games this fall,” Gill said. “Games will be played on weekday nights so as not to affect high school football.”

Some parents, Gill pointed out, won’t allow their children to play tackle football at a young age because of their concern over potential injuries. “I felt the same way, but I love football, and I wanted my son to enjoy the fun of playing flag football while preparing himself to play tackle football at an older age,” Gill said.

Hartselle Flag Football games are played in two 20-minute halves with five players on each team. Teams are divided into ages 5-7, 8-10 and 11-13.