Flushing View

Flushing Youth Tackle Football and Cheer program wraps up successful season




Players, cheerleaders, coaches and volunteers from the 2019 Flushing Youth Tackle Football and Cheer program. Photo credit: Alternative Photography of Flushing

Players, cheerleaders, coaches and volunteers from the 2019 Flushing Youth Tackle Football and Cheer program. Photo credit: Alternative Photography of Flushing

FLUSHING — Youth football players and cheerleaders had the chance to gain skills and have fun throughout the fall season as part of the Flushing Youth Tackle Football and Cheer program in Flushing.

2019 proved to be a successful year for Flushing youth football, which fielded three junior varsity teams (ages 10-12) and three freshman teams (ages 8-10). All six of the program’s teams qualified for the Genesee County Football League (GCFL) playoffs, and three squads—Flushing Orange and Flushing White (freshman) and Flushing White (JV)—all advanced to their respective championship games.

In the freshman division, Flushing Orange defeated Flushing White to claim the league title. Meanwhile, Flushing White (JV) fell to Davison Gold in the JV championship game. Both games were played in Goodrich on Sunday.

Six cheer teams also performed on the sidelines for Flushing Youth Tackle and Cheer this year, including three freshman and three JV squads. With youth football season in the books, Flushing youth cheerleaders will now culminate their season by participating in the first-ever GCFL Cheer Competition at Flushing High School this Saturday.

The competition, which starts at 3 p.m., will feature a bake sale hosted by the Flushing High School cheerleaders. There will also be a bow vendor, a snow cone stand and concessions. Admission is $5.

Altogether, over 230 kids participated in the Flushing Youth Tackle Football and Cheer program in 2019. The GCFL season kicked off shortly after Labor Day and continued with six regular season games and a playoff round, which was held at the end of October. During the season, Flushing’s youth football teams competed against squads from Davison, Goodrich, Bendle, Clio and Holly.

Johnathan Nelson, president of Flushing Youth Tackle Football and Cheer, said that players and cheerleaders learned the key fundamentals of their respective sports, while also developing respect for coaches and having a great deal of fun each week.

“Our objective is that they’re prepared for the next level, whether that’s continuing in football and cheer or taking the lessons they learn here over to other sports like wrestling or softball,” he said. “We also want to put on a good game for the parents and build camaraderie with the players and the cheerleaders.”

Parents of Flushing youth football players and cheerleaders who are interested in volunteering for the program next year can contact flushingfootballcheer@gmail.com. More info on the program is available on the Flushing Youth Tackle Football and Cheer Facebook page and flushingyouthfootball.org.